US embassy cable - 05ANKARA608

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 03 ANKARA 000608 
 
SIPDIS 
 
DEPARTMENT FOR INR/R/MR, EUR/SE, EUR/PD, NEA/PD, DRL 
JCS PASS J-5/CDR S. WRIGHT 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: OPRC, KMDR, TU, Press Summaries 
SUBJECT: ANKARA MEDIA REACTION REPORT 
WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 2, 2005 
 
 
THIS REPORT PRESENTS THE TURKISH PRESS SUMMARY UNDER THREE 
THEMES: 
 
HEADLINES 
BRIEFING 
EDITORIAL OPINION 
--------------------------------------------- ----- 
 
HEADLINES 
 
MASS APPEAL 
Feith: Preserving Iraqi territorial integrity our top 
priority - Sabah 
Erdogan: US `insensitive' to anti-democratic ambitions in 
Iraq - Hurriyet 
Kirkuk pain in Ankara -Sabah 
Kurds claim to have 68 percent of votes in Kirkuk - Hurriyet 
Talabani: Kirkuk will be a city of peace - Aksam 
Talabani wants `Brussels model' for Kirkuk - Milliyet 
Boucher: We are working with GOT on PKK - Hurriyet 
Abbas seeks Ankara's support for Middle East peace - 
Milliyet 
Israeli army chief Ya'alon arrives for defense talks - Aksam 
Ankara considers sending Turkish troops to tsunami region - 
Hurriyet 
 
OPINION MAKERS 
Rice, Lavrov to meet in Ankara - Cumhuriyet 
Feith: Iraq's unity a priority for US, Turkey - Yeni Safak 
Erdogan: We won't allow chaos in Iraq - Yeni Safak 
Shiite leadership wants US forces to stay in Iraq - Radikal 
Shiite alliance cold to Allawi, prefer a coalition with the 
Kurds - Zaman 
Turkey gives Abbas full support - Radikal 
Abbas: Middle East peace closer now - Zaman 
Moscow agrees to activate Iran's first nuclear plant - 
Cumhuriyet 
 
 
BRIEFING 
 
PM Erdogan criticizes US over Iraq:  On Tuesday, PM Tayyip 
Erdogan accused the United States of ignoring `certain 
developments in Iraq which our nation has deeply regretted' 
at a group meeting of his ruling AK Party.  `Forces who came 
to the region to bring democracy have preferred to remain 
indifferent to anti-democratic ambitions,' Erdogan said, 
without mentioning names.  `Let me say once again that any 
step taken without considering Turkey's rights will yield no 
result other than fanning the fire in the region,' Erdogan 
said.  Meanwhile, today's papers cited the PUK leader 
Talabani as saying that the Kurds would prefer to implement 
a `Brussels model' in Kirkuk, a city where he said Kurds, 
Arabs, and Turkmen could live together in peace.  Talabani 
claimed that the Kurdish candidate won 68 percent of ballots 
cast in Kirkuk, and will control 26 of 41 seats in the 
Kirkuk provincial assembly.  He reiterated that Kirkuk is 
`part of Iraqi Kurdistan, as shown in documents from Ottoman 
times.' 
 
Feith confirms Washington seeking cargo hub at Incirlik AB: 
Douglas Feith, US Undersecretary of Defense for policy, said 
that `preserving Iraq's territorial integrity is a key to 
stability and peace in the region.'  The Kirkuk dispute and 
other problems of concern for Turkey should be resolved `in 
a way that strengthens the territorial integrity and unity 
of Iraq,' Feith told a news conference Tuesday before 
wrapping up his two-day visit.  `We've had some differences 
over Iraq and these differences have caused problems,' Feith 
said, `but problems are not that unusual in an alliance of 
free and soveriegn countries,' he added.  Feith noted that 
`we have had a useful, strong, deeply-rooted alliance with 
Turkey for many years, and that will continue.'  Feith noted 
that the US and Turkey have enough good will and common 
interests to keep the alliance healthy despite the problems. 
He suggested that Turkey could play a leading regional role 
in the fight against terrorism.  Feith also confirmed that 
Washington was seeking to use Incirlik airbase in Adana as a 
logistical cargo hub for US forces operating in the region, 
according to reports.  "Cumhuriyet" claims that Feith urged 
Ankara to pass a law that would ease US access to Incirlik. 
"Hurriyet" claims that Turkey's National Security Council 
(NSC) Secretary-General, Yigit Alpogan, advised U/S Feith 
that a Sunni should be included in the Iraqi interim cabinet 
before general elections later this year, and that the 
Sunnis be included in the process of rewriting the Iraqi 
constitution.  "Milliyet" highlighted Feith's comments on 
the Proliferation Security Initiative, in which he invited 
Turkey to take a leadership role.  Feith noted that the 
`Libyan model,' in which the Libyans were persuaded to give 
up their weapons of mass destruction under intense 
international pressure, could be a useful lesson for Iran. 
Feith confirmed that the United States no longer has an 
interest in permanent basing of F-16 warplanes at Incirlik, 
but he left open the possibility of temporary rotations of 
US planes through Incirlik. 
 
Palestine's Abbas sees progress towards Middle East peace: 
Visiting Palestinian head of state Mahmud Abbas said after 
meeting President Sezer Tuesday that Israel and Palestine 
were holding `continual' talks, and that preparations were 
underway for a meeting between he Israeli PM Ariel Sharon. 
Abbas said that security and peace in the region can be made 
a reality only through the implementation of the US-backed 
roadmap.  Sezer told Abbas that Turkey's support for the 
peace process and an independent Palestinian state will 
increase.  Abbas, accompanied by FM Nabil Shaath, met PM 
Erdogan and business leaders later Tuesday and will leave on 
Wednesday after meeting Parliament Speaker Bulent Arinc. 
 
Israeli army chief visits Turkey:  Israel's chief of staff 
General Moshe Yaalon met with his Turkish counterpart, Hilmi 
Ozkok, and President Sezer for talks aimed at strengthening 
bilateral ties, Turkish papers report.   Reports say that 
Yaalon bargained with Ankara about possible defense deals 
worth 1.5 billion dollars, including an Israeli upgrade to 
the Turkish military's ageing F-4 Phantom jetfighters, 
modernization of Turkish F-16s, and Turkey's purchase of 
Israeli unmanned reconnaissance planes. 
 
EU, Cyprus warn Turkey to recognize Nicosia:  The European 
Commission and Cyprus reminded Turkey on Tuesday it must 
extend its customs union with the EU to include the Republic 
of Cyprus before it can begin membership talks with the 
European bloc in early October.  `Either Ankara signs to 
extend its customs union agreement, or it has no talks,' 
Papdopoulos told the press in Nicosia.  European Commission 
official Jean-Christophe Filori told visiting Turkish 
journalists in Brussels that a delay in extending Turkey's 
customs union agreement would be a problem, and that 
negotiations may not begin on time. 
 
 
EDITORIAL OPINION:  Iraq 
 
"Ankara Seems to Dislike Iraqi Democracy" 
Cengiz Candar wrote in the conservative "DB Tercuman" (2/2): 
"Interestingly enough, Turkey continues to view the Iraq 
issue through the `lens' of Kirkuk in the post-election 
period.  The Turkish government is busy making angry 
statements and talking about `red lines' and implied 
threats.  Leaving aside the Sunni boycott and the Iraqi 
resistance, the election process in Iraq was a success.  But 
Ankara is giving the impression that it remains unhappy 
about it. . The anti-American rhetoric coming from PM 
Erdogan and FM Gul is very unfortunate, because such 
statements only put Turkey in the same category with Syria, 
Egypt, and Jordan on this matter.  . It is no secret that 
Iraqi Kurds have a strong desire for independence and are 
pushing for Kirkuk to be part of the Kurdistan Regional 
Authority.  It is also understandable that Turkey considers 
this as a matter of concern.  But the current statements 
from the Turkish government are serving no purpose at all. 
It is very likely that a Kurdish figure, probably Talabani, 
will be the new president of Iraq.  His close links with 
Turkey will certainly help to diminish this tendency toward 
independence.'  Therefore Turkey should refrain from making 
inflammatory official statements that will only serve to 
incite more Turkish-Kurdish tension." 
 
"Is it Only Iraq's Internal Issue?" 
Sami Kohen commented in the mass appeal "Milliyet" (2/2): 
"The contradiction in Barzani and Talabani's statements 
makes me wonder if this is a difference of opinion or simply 
a difference of expression or tactics.  The Barzani 
statement, that the Kurds will one day establish an 
independent state, most likely reflects the feelings of the 
majority of Iraqi Kurds.  However, Zabari and Talabani's 
statements also prove that there are certain facts that 
place limitations on this concept.  The Sunni Arabs, the 
Shiites, and the Turkmen in Iraq, as well as all neighboring 
countries and the US oppose the establishment of an 
independent Kurdish state in Iraq.  It is therefore 
unthinkable that the Kurds could use force to achieve this 
goal.  But it is also a fact that the Kurds will play a 
broad role - both in their region and in the new 
administration in Baghdad - in the new political structure 
of Iraq.  As I mentioned yesterday, Ankara has to determine 
new strategies that take these facts into account. 
Moreover, Ankara should be in dialogue with every other 
element in Iraq, including the Kurds, in order to establish 
stability and to prevent any kind of provocation and 
conflict.  This would be to everyone's benefit.  No one 
should interpret such a step as `interference in internal 
issues.' 
 
EDELMAN