US embassy cable - 05ANKARA644

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 ANKARA 000644 
 
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 
THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 3, 2005 
 
 
THIS REPORT PRESENTS THE TURKISH PRESS SUMMARY UNDER THREE 
THEMES: 
 
HEADLINES 
BRIEFING 
EDITORIAL OPINION 
--------------------------------------------- ----- 
 
HEADLINES 
 
MASS APPEAL 
 
Washington: "Turkey Doesn't Own Iraq" -Hurriyet 
Feith: "Iraqi Integrity Should Be Preserved" -Hurriyet 
A Key Test for Rice - Sabah 
Bomb Panic in Incirlik - Sabah 
British Ambassador Westmacott to Turkey: "We are Aware of 
Your Worries" - Milliyet 
Ankara Visit Is A Key Test for Rice - Milliyet 
US Press: "Rice Has A Difficult Mission in Turkey" - Turkiye 
Ankara Summit for Rice and Lavrov - Turkiye 
FM Gul: "The US Should Do More to Eliminate Terrorists in 
Northern Iraq" - Turkiye 
TGS Intelligence Report: "Kurdish Armed Forces To Be 
Established in Iraq" - Aksam 
 
OPINION MAKERS 
 
Kurds in Iraq Happy about the Election Results - Radikal 
US-Russian Summit in Ankara - Radikal 
Election Fiasco Confession from Iraqi Interim Government - 
Cumhuriyet 
Iraq Warning from Gul to US - Yeni Safak 
From Gul to US: "Take Action for Kirkuk" - Zaman 
 
BRIEFING 
 
Pentagon Undersecretary Feith Comments:  In an interview 
with "Hurriyet," Pentagon Undersecretary Douglas Feith said 
`Turkish views about Iraq are considered important by the US 
and always taken into account in US policies'.  In response 
to a question about Turkish concerns for the Iraqi 
elections, Feith said that the Kirkuk problem ought to be 
solved by the Iraqi people and that the US supports the 
preservation of Iraqi integrity. 
 
SecState Rice's Upcoming Visit:  All papers report about the 
upcoming visit of the US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice 
to Turkey.  "Vatan", "Posta" and "Milliyet" cite `The 
International Herald Tribune' as source to say that `in a 
way this visit will be a key test for the Secretary in her 
efforts to ease the tension in Turkish-US relations'. 
"Radikal" and "Turkiye" report about the meeting that will 
take place in Ankara on Saturday night with Rice and the 
Russian FM Lavrov.  Rice and Lavrov will discuss 
preparations for a summit between US President Bush and 
Russian President Putin in Slovakia on February 24. 
 
Turkey Seeks British Support for the Problems in Iraq: 
"Milliyet" reports that Turkey 
seeks British support to convey its concerns about Iraq to 
the US Administration.  Within this framework, Turkish envoy 
to Iraq Osman Koruturk recently held high-level meetings in 
London.  British Ambassador to Ankara Peter Westmacott told 
"Milliyet" that his country understands the concerns Turkey 
has over Iraq and has already issued the necessary warnings 
to the Kurds. 
 
Turkish General Staff (TGS) Intelligence Report about Iraq: 
"Aksam" reports that according to a TGS intelligence report, 
Barzani and Talabani are planning to join their Peshmerge 
forces in order to establish Kurdish Armed Forces in Iraq. 
 
EDITORIAL OPINION:  Iraq; The Middle East 
 
"US-Turkey and Iraq" 
Ali Sirmen commented in the leftist-opinion maker 
"Cumhuriyet" (2/3): "Not only Turks, but also American 
strategists admit the fact that Washington does not care 
about Turkey's concerns about northern Iraq.  The US 
declared the PKK as a terrorist organization, but took no 
action and assumed no responsibility even though the area is 
under American control.  The US continues to commit itself 
to the territorial integrity of Iraq, but it only stands by 
and watches statements from Talabani and Barzani that tell a 
very different story. . The Kurdish card is no longer just a 
US policy option for the Middle East and Iraq - it now must 
be taken as a given.  The US will not give up the Kurdish 
issue as its `trump card' in both the Iraqi political 
process and the Broader Middle East Initiative.  Given these 
facts, it would be very wrong for Turkey to be reluctant to 
pursue a firm policy on Iraq out of fear that it may clash 
with Washington.  Turkey should not underestimate its 
influence as a regional power, because any implementation of 
American policy that does not take Turkey into account will 
eventually harm the interests of both Ankara and 
Washington." 
 
"Finally, Diplomacy is at Work in Middle East" 
Sami Kohen observed in the mass appeal "Milliyet" (2/3): 
"Egypt has conducted a kind of silent diplomacy that 
successfully paved the way for the upcoming Israel-Palestine 
summit next Tuesday.  The fact that this summit is taking 
place is historically important, because for the first time 
in four years the leaders of Israel and Palestine will have 
a face-to-face meeting.  There won't be an agreement like 
the one at Camp David, but if the summit can at least 
provide a consensus on a ceasefire and joint security 
measures and open the door for a peace process, it should be 
considered a big success.  Both leaders will certainly be 
under attack from militants, so reaching agreement on 
security and a ceasefire will not be an easy task.  Even if 
the two leaders agree, implementation could present 
problems.  On this matter, both leaders will need strong 
foreign and domestic support.  Obviously, there will be a 
lot of opportunities for Turkish diplomacy to have an impact 
in the post-summit process." 
EDELMAN