US embassy cable - 05ANKARA1447

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 04 ANKARA 001447 
 
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 
MONDAY, MARCH 14, 2005 
 
 
THIS REPORT PRESENTS THE TURKISH PRESS SUMMARY UNDER THREE 
THEMES: 
 
HEADLINES 
BRIEFING 
EDITORIAL OPINION 
--------------------------------------------- ----- 
 
HEADLINES 
 
MASS APPEAL 
Iraqi Cabinet Negotiations at Kirkuk Impasse - Hurriyet 
Iran Temporarily Halts Nuclear Activities - Aksam 
Iran Rebuffs US, Will Stick to `Peaceful' Nuclear Program - 
Hurriyet 3/13 
Israel Claims Iran Very Close to Making Nuclear Bomb - 
Hurriyet 3/13 
Hughes to Refurbish Image of the United States - Hurriyet 
3/13 
Newsweek: European Muslims Transit Turkey to Join Iraq 
Rebels - Sabah 
Washington Post: Islam `Phobia' on the Rise in Europe - 
Sabah 
Sex Scandal in Guantanamo - Hurriyet 3/13 
Jaako Blomberg to Become New EU Envoy for Cyprus - Milliyet 
Turkish Cyprus Prepares for Presidential Elections on April 
17 - Aksam 
 
OPINION MAKERS 
Iraq Cabinet Bargaining Stuck on Kirkuk - Zaman 
Syria Hastily Pulls Back From Lebanon - Radikal 
Damascus to Remove All Intelligence Personnel from Lebanon - 
Zaman 3/13 
Iran: EU Will Not Insist on Ending Nuclear Program - Yeni 
Safak 3/13 
Sharon Approves Plan for Attack Against Iran - Yeni Safak 
Khatami Ready for Cooperation on Nuclear Issues - Zaman 
Turks Dislike Bush, Not the United States - Yeni Safak 3/13 
Turks Love Clinton - Radikal 3/13 
Blair's Anti-Terror Bill Approved - Cumhuriyet 3/13 
HRW: US Forces Tortured to Death 2 Inmates at Bagram - Yeni 
Safak 3/13 
China Intensifies Preparation for War - Yeni Safak 
 
 
BRIEFING 
 
US, EU Urge President Sezer to Cancel Syria Visit:  The 
United States and the European Union, exerting pressure on 
Syria to pull back troops from Lebanon, have called on 
President Sezer to postpone or cancel his scheduled visit to 
Damascus.  An EU official is quoted as saying that Ankara's 
reluctance to endorse the international consensus on Syria 
has raised `questions marks' about Turkey in Europe.  The EU 
official sai that Turkey `should be pressuring Turkey' for a 
withdrawal from Lebanon.    A source close to President 
Sezer told "Sabah" that the President has no plans to 
postpone the visit. 
 
AKP Approves Islamic Capital Inflow:  A bill endorsing an 
agreement on Turkey's accession to the "Islamic Corporation 
for the Development of Private Sector," a Jeddah-based 
organization which extends loans to companies doing business 
according to Islamic principles, has been approved by the 
Parliament's Foreign Affairs Committee, "Milliyet" reports. 
Main opposition CHP lawmakers objected to a provision of the 
agreement that stipulates that any dispute between a lender 
and receiver company would be settled in line with Islamic 
rules (Sharia).  The CHP claimed that this provision 
contradicts the principle of secularism as defined in the 
Turkish Constitution as well as the European norms.  The AKP 
defended the agreement as an effort facilitate the flow of 
foreign capital to Turkey.  The CHP is looking for ways to 
cancel the agreement. 
 
Turks Dislike Bush, Not the United Sates:   A recent opinion 
research conducted among 1250 Turks in Ankara, Istanbul, 
Izmir and Adana by the International Strategic Studies 
Institute (USAK) shows that 91 percent of Turks do not 
approve of President Bush's policies, while only 28 percent 
of the respondents described themselves as `anti-American.' 
74 percent of respondents said US policies regarding the PKK 
and northern Iraq are the most important problems in US- 
Turkish relations.  71 percent rejected the claim that the 
Turkish people view the US as an enemy.  69 percent of 
respondents said that Bill Clinton was the best US for 
ensuring world peace and security. 
 
Justice Minister to Attend Holocaust Memorial Museum Opening 
in Jerusalem:  Justice Minister and government spokesman 
Cemil Cicek will deliver a speech at the opening of the 
Holocaust Memorial Museum in Jerusalem on Tuesday. 
According to a report in Sunday's "Sabah," Cicek will also 
lay the groundwork for a visit to Israel by PM Tayyip 
Erdogan in coming months.  Cicek may meet with some Israeli 
officials during his visit. 
 
"Mein Kampf" Selling Fast in Turkey:  Nazi dictator Adolf 
Hitler's "Mein Kampf" is selling so fast in Turkey that it 
has entered the bestseller lists, Turkish papers reported 
over the weekend.  "Mein Kampf" has become a `handbook' for 
supporters of the extreme nationalist Nationalist Action 
Party (MHP) and the Youth Party (GP), and is being widely 
read by students in police academies and schools in Turkey, 
according to a report in Sunday's "Radikal" supplement. 
"Radikal" argues that the real reason for the growing 
interest in the book is the rise of anti-Semitism in Turkey. 
"The Protocols of Zion," a fraudulent document an a main 
source of inspiration for "Mein Kampf," has been printed 
more than 100 times in Turkey between since 1943, the paper 
notes.  "Mein Kampf"s fast sales in Turkey, a country where 
reading levels are not very high, has surprised German 
authorities, Saturday's "Hurriyet" claims.  Bavaria's 
finance minister, Kurt Faltlhauser, has urged the German 
ministry of foreign affairs to explore all legal ways to 
stop the printing and distribution of the book in Turkey. 
13 publishers have printed the book in Turkish.  In January, 
a Turkish publisher sold 20,000 copies of "Mein Kampf" for 
5.90 New Turkish Lira (less than 5 USD) each. 
 
Sarbanes to Quit Politics:  US Senator Paul Sarbanes (72), 
known for his anti-Turkey positions, has decided to leave 
politics in 2006, "Yeni Safak" reports.  Sarbanes, among the 
most liberal of US Democrats, has supported all attempts by 
the Greek and Armenian lobbies against Turkey, the paper 
emphasizes. 
 
"Bridges TV" Draws Big Interest:  "Bridges TV," the first 
broadcaster with programs aimed specifically at Muslims 
living in the United States, has drawn great interest, "Yeni 
Safak" reports.  The network is currently on the air in 
Detroit and Toledo, urban areas densely populated by 
Muslims.  "Bridge TV" is to expand its broadcasts to cover 
Chicago, New York, Los Angeles, Washington, Dallas and 
Columbus in coming months. 
 
Turkish Media Criticizes New Penal Code:  Led by Turkey's 
Press Council, media representatives discussed the new 
Turkish Penal Code over the weekend and said that the new 
code includes many provisions that limit freedom of 
expression.  Press Council Chairman Oktay Eksi voiced 
concern that Turkey will be referred to as the largest 
`press prison' in the world.  The media representatives set 
up a working group to develop proposals for changing the law 
to be submitted to the Government.  Opposition parties and 
several commentaries over the weekend criticized the ruling 
AK Party government for curtailing freedom of the press for 
the sake of fighting against terrorism. 
 
DEHAP Invites Talabani, Barzani to Join `Nevruz' 
Celebrations:  Monday's "Milliyet" reports that the pro- 
Kurdish DEHAP provincial organization in the mainly Kurdish 
southeastern city Diyarbakir has invited northern Iraqi 
Kurdish leaders Talabani and Barzani to join in Nevruz 
celebrations to be held there on March 21. 
 
Former Iraqi General Warns Against Sunni-Shiite Conflict: 
Salah Mahmud Ali, a former Iraqi army general who fled to 
Turkey in 1999 after refusing to carry out Saddam Hussein's 
orders to bomb regions populated by the Kurds, told Sunday's 
"Zaman" that he is ready to resume his post in the army if 
stability is achieved in Iraq.  General Mahmud Ali pointed 
to growing tension between the Sunnis and Shiites in his 
country: `Today, the Shiites and the Kurds are the groups in 
control in Iraq, and the Sunnis have been excluded.' Ali 
warned against  the possibility of civil strife between 
rival communities in Iraq. 
 
FM Gul in the UK:  FM Abdullah Gul, in Britain on an 
official visit, will urge the British Government to take 
steps in an effort to remove international sanctions on the 
Turkish Cypriots, and subsequently to compel Nicosia to work 
for a solution to the Cyprus question.  Gul will also tell 
British FM Jack Straw that Turkey supports a timetable for 
the withdrawal of coalition forces that would enable the 
Iraqi people to decide their own future.  He will reportedly 
note that the Sunnis should be represented in the new Iraqi 
administration in order to avoid a possible ethnic strife. 
Gul is also expected to stress that allowing displaced 
Turkmen to return to Kirkuk is as important as the return of 
the Kurds forced to leave their homes during Saddam's 
regime. 
 
Chechens, Turks Protest Killing of Maskhadov:  Thousands of 
protesters rallied outside an Istanbul mosque after Friday 
prayers to condemn the killing of Chechen leader Aslan 
Maskhadov by Russian security forces.  The demonstrators 
carried banners and Chechen flags, and held a symbolic 
funeral for the slain rebel leader at the Fatih mosque in 
central Istanbul, home to thousands of Chechen nationals and 
their descendents.  Anti-Russian protests took place in 
other Turkish cities after Friday prayers. 
 
`Turkish Taliban' Released From Guantanamo:  Monday papers 
report that `Turkish Taliban' Murat Kurnaz, who has been 
held at the US military base in Guantanamo Bay since 2002, 
has been sent back to Turkey.  According to the reports, 
Kurnaz has been handed over to Turkish authorities at 
Incirlik Airbase in southern Turkey. 
 
 
EDITORIAL OPINION:  Syria-Iran; Iraq 
 
"Damascus, Tehran and the World" 
Yasemin Congar wrote in the mass appeal "Milliyet" (3/14): 
"A correct interpretation of current events in the Middle 
East requires a clear eye, free from ideological blinders. 
Developments concerning Syria and Iran since the day of the 
Hariri assassination indicate that the international policy 
focus on the Middle East has increased its tempo and 
intensity over the past month. . UN resolution 1559 provided 
an international basis for for a complete Syrian withdrawal 
from Lebanon.  If that happens, and if Lebanon goes through 
a free election process, we can expect rapid steps toward 
peace and democratization in the region.  Turkey should 
support this process with full enthusiasm.  The US and the 
EU are now on the same page regarding Iran, which should be 
pleasing to Ankara. . As President Bush has noted, the US 
and its European friends are now speaking with a single 
voice.  Interestingly enough, Syria and Iran announced a 
joint front four weeks ago, and today each of them is trying 
to meet the demands of a united international community. 
Preventing a war in this region requires being a part of the 
international front against Syria and Iran, not establishing 
an anti-US solidarity with those countries." 
 
"What Should Turkey Do?" 
Kamuran Ozbir opined in the nationalist "Ortadogu" (3/14): 
"First of all, Turkey should give a guarantee to the Kurds 
and the Iraqi Administration that it has no intention to 
intervene in Iraq's internal issues.  Moreover, Turkey 
should declare its support for every action toward the 
establishment of an infrastructure for democratization, 
lasting peace and stability in Iraq.  Instead of looking 
only at the Turkmen's situation in Iraq, Ankara should 
encourage the Iraqi Kurdish Regional Assembly to create a 
new regional constitution that would establish human rights, 
equality, and civil freedoms for every citizen in the 
Kurdistan region.  By acting in this way, Turkey will give 
the message to the new Iraqi leaders and the Iraqi people 
that Turkey wants to see Iraq as a strong, free, democratic 
partner rather than a country on the verge of civil war. 
Turkey should not consider it as a problem that there are 
many Kurdish parliamentarians or that a Kurdish leader may 
become President of Iraq.  Turkey should give the signal 
that it has started a new policy toward Iraq and the Kurds. 
This can be accomplished by leaving aside the `Kurdish 
Phobia' and considering the Kurds in Iraq as a key ally." 
 
EDELMAN