US embassy cable - 05ANKARA4484

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 04 ANKARA 004484 
 
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, AUGUST 1, 2005 
 
THIS REPORT PRESENTS THE TURKISH PRESS SUMMARY UNDER THREE 
THEMES: 
 
HEADLINES 
BRIEFING 
EDITORIAL OPINION 
--------------------------------------------- -- 
 
HEADLINES 
 
MASS APPEAL 
London Police Seek Third Group of Terrorists - Sabah 
London Bomber Claims No Link to al-Qaida - Hurriyet 
Iran to Continue Nuclear Program - Vatan 
Iraqi Insurgents Attack British Consulate Vehicle - Aksam 
7/31 
Uzbekistan Asks US to Leave Hanabad Base - Aksam 7/31 
Pope Supports IRA Decision - Vatan 
Russia Bans ABC-TV for Basayev Interview - Vatan 
Russians Pull Out of Georgia - Milliyet 
Pakistan Deports All Foreign Theology Students - Milliyet 
7/31 
Bush's Health `Perfect' - Sabah 
 
OPINION MAKERS 
PKK Office in US-Controlled Kirkuk - Yeni Safak 
EU Sees Turkish Military as Obstacle to EU Membership - 
Cumhuriyet 7/31 
London Fears Third Wave of Attacks - Radikal 
Washington Times: PKK Casts Shadow on US-Turkey Alliance - 
Yeni Safak 7/30 
US Companies Return to Libya - Radikal 
4,000 Killed in Iraq in 7 Months - Yeni Safak 
Suicide Attack in Iraq: 25 Killed - Yeni Safak 7/30 
Iraqi Constitution Will be Finished on Time - Zaman 
Amnesty Denounces Syria for more Political Arrests - Yeni 
Safak 7/30 
25 Inmates on Hunger Strike at Gitmo - Yeni Safak 7/30 
Anti-Mubarak Demonstration in Cairo - Cumhuriyet 
Food Aid Sent to Niger After 8 Months - Radikal 
 
 
BRIEFING 
 
PKK Opens Office in Kirkuk:  The Pro-Kurdish Democratic 
Solution Party, known to be a political extension of the 
PKK, has opened a new office in Kirkuk in the neighborhood 
where the US Consulate is located, Monday papers report. 
Dailes claim that a PKK flag and a flag symbolizing jailed 
PKK leader Ocalan's proposal for a democratic confederation 
of Kurds are flying over the building in which the office is 
located.  Reports further claim that posters of Ocalan have 
been hung on the walls of the building.  An staff of 60 
people are believed to be working in the building, which 
also houses a radio station through which the PKK 
communicates with its supporters.  Dailies report that 
"Turkmeneli TV," a Turkmen television channel in Kirkuk, 
claimed that neither US nor Iraqi forces have intervened to 
prevent the office from functioning. Dailies emphasize that 
US and Iraqi promises to block PKK activities in northern 
Iraq have not been kept. 
 
Ankara Extends Customs Union Protocol With EU:  On Friday 
night, Turkey signed a customs protocol with the European 
Union, a key condition for the opening of EU accession talks 
with Ankara, the Turkish Foreign Ministry (MFA) said in a 
statement.  The MFA added that Ankara's signing of the 
accord, which extends an existing customs agreement to the 
10 new members of the bloc, does not constitute a formal 
recognition of Cyprus.  `The signing, ratification and 
implementation of this protocol in no way means the 
recognition of the Republic of Cyprus, which is mentioned in 
the protocol,' the statement said.  The ministry's 
declaration, released simultaneously with the new protocol, 
stresses that the special relationship between Turkey and 
the `TRNC' would continue, and that restrictions on Greek 
Cypriot vessels and planes seeking to enter Turkish ports 
and airports would continue.  Papers speculate that the ban 
will be used as a `trump card' in Turkey's efforts to end 
international sanctions against the Turkish Cyprus.  Turkish 
parliamentary approval is required for the protocol to take 
effect.  Weekend reports suggest that the Government is not 
planning to bring the issue to the parliament until after 
the talks begin on October 3. 
 
Bartholomew Complains of `Bad Intentions' Toward Minority 
Foundations:  "Milliyet" reports that Ecumenical Patriarch 
Bartholomew I accused Ankara of having `bad intentions' in 
its relationship with the Patriarchate based on Turkey's 
alleged efforts to seize assets of the Greek Orthodox Church 
in Istanbul.  Bartholomew was speaking at the opening of a 
youth camp for disadvantaged children in Istanbul, which had 
been delayed by the insistence of the Foundations 
Directorate that the Patriarchate agree to forfeit control 
of their monastery on Kinaliada when the youth camp 
finished.  `People would not leave their homes if there were 
no problems,' he said.  `If we really want to become 
Europeans, we must change our attitudes, not just make some 
reforms and pass a few laws that are sometimes implemented 
and sometimes not,' Bartholomew added.  The Patriarch 
criticized the way Turkish authorities have handled the 
Patriarchate's institutions and property issues, and the 
fact that Turkey has refused to reopen Halki Seminary, which 
has been closed for 34 years.  `The Ecumenical Patriarchate 
has never intended to create problems for the Turkish state 
or government.  But it demands its rights from the state and 
does not accept unfair treatment.  We are not foreigners in 
this land,' Bartholomew stressed.  Deputy PM Mehmet Ali 
Sahin rejected any discrimination against minority religious 
foundations in Turkey.  `The problem is that minority 
foundations demand privileges greater than the rights 
granted to Muslim foundations,' Sahin said.  `Turkey's 
General Directorate for Foundations administers 41,550 
foundations, and only 40 or 50 of them belong to the 
minorities here,' he added.  Sahin said that he may initiate 
legal action against Patriarch Bartholomew.  In the 
meantime, Turkey's Supreme Court of Appeals issued a ruling 
in favor of the Patriarchate, noting that the Foundations 
Directorate does not have the right to take over long-term 
control of the administration of minority foundations. 
 
Kretschmer on Turkish Military's Impact on Politics: 
European Union (EU) Commission Turkey representative 
Hansjoerg Kretschmer said at a dinner with businessmen in 
Turkey's southern city of Adana that the Turkish military is 
still very influential in Turkish politics, and that this is 
one of the obstacles to the country's adaptation process to 
the EU.  Kretschmer reportedly said that military-civilian 
relations are different in EU countries from those in 
Turkey, and that European practices should be analyzed by 
the Turkish side. 
 
Shiites, Sunnis Protest Killings, Detentions:  Thousands of 
Sunnis and Shiites marched together after Friday prayers in 
Baghdad to protest torture and arbitrary detentions by 
coalition forces, "Yeni Safak" reports.  The protesters, who 
were supported by the Iraq Islam Party, called for an end to 
killings and torture, the release of suspects under 
detention, and for an independent commission to investigate 
killings during security operations.  The protest ended 
peacefully. 
 
Turkey-US Military Exchange Program:  The US has offered a 
new plan of bilateral exchange.  60 military officers would 
be exchanged between the US and Turkey each year in an 
effort to create new opportunities and improve military 
ties, "Sabah" reported on Sunday.  The Turkish General Staff 
(TGS) welcomed the plan, but has not yet given an official 
response. 
Young Turks Pin Hopes to EU:  Young Turks see their future 
hopes linked to the EU, according to a poll of high school 
students.  The poll showed that the students believe that 
unemployment will fall and education standards will rise 
with Turkish membership in the EU.  The poll was conducted 
among 4,542 students in 60 high schools in 12 major Turkish 
cities.  66.9 percent of the students believe that EU 
membership will yield positive results for Turkey, and only 
18.6 disagreed.  71.6 percent said EU membership will reduce 
inefficiencies in state services in Turkey.  60.4 percent 
expect an erosion in ethical values if Turkey joins the EU, 
and 65.5 expect drug addiction to rise.  18.6 percent said 
Turkey should join the Islamic world instead of other 
international groupings. 
 
Turkish Truck Driver Missing in Iraq:  A Turkish truck 
driver, Mehmet Konac, has been missing in Iraq for 25 days, 
papers report.  Konac's wife believes her husband was 
kidnapped.  Konac was ferrying goods to US forces in Iraq. 
 
 
EDITORIAL OPINION:  The Global War on Terrorism 
 
"An Historical Duty" 
Washington-based Yasemin Congar wrote in the mainstream 
"Milliyet" (8/1): "Turkey's identity is a composition of 
Muslim, democratic, secular, and Western elements. This fact 
makes Turkey unique in the region, from Iran to Greece. 
Moreover, it may bring us a valuable advantage.  . It may 
seem like a paradox, but Turkey's Muslim identity provides a 
chance as well as a heavy responsibility to stand against 
the Islamist nature of global terrorism and anti-Muslim 
sentiment in the EU.  Turkey will only be able to take 
advantage of this opportunity by emphasizing its identity 
even more than before, and by developing firm position 
against the Islamist terror and the ideology it represents. 
The western, democratic, Muslim and secular characters of 
Turkey should be combined with a creative message to both 
Western and Islamic nations.  This is an historical duty 
that stems from Turkey's identity.  Carrying out this 
mission will also help the West, particularly the EU, to 
understand and appreciate Turkey.  This will require a 
change in the current political reflexes.  It will require 
that we denounce Islamist terror by naming it for what it 
is, stop looking for excuses for Al-Qaida terror, and stop 
taking offense at the depiction of Turkey as a `moderate 
Muslim' country.  If one day Turkey becomes a full member of 
the EU, it will not happen not in spite of our identity, but 
precisely because the EU appreciates the value of our 
identity." 
 
"The Transatlantic Failure" 
Kamuran Ozbir wrote in the nationalist "Ortadogu" (8/1): 
"The current picture looks like a conspiracy against Turkey 
in the fight against terrorism.  The US is refusing to deal 
with the 5,000 armed Kurdish PKK militants in northern Iraq. 
As if this were not bad enough, the US has also started to 
see increased PKK attacks in Turkey.  The European Union, on 
the other hand, is providing credible evidence to justify 
Turkey's prejudice about Western countries' unwillingness to 
take in a Muslim nation.  Developments are heading in a 
negative direction, and neither EU nor the US seems capable 
of coping with the problems. . The US strategists seem enjoy 
acting in a vengeful way by not taking any action against 
PKK movements along the Turkish-Iraqi border.  This is 
probably a retaliation for Turkey's refusal to pass the 
March 1 decree before the Iraq war.  But the US should also 
consider the possible consequences of such retaliation. 
Washington will not be happy to see Turkey turn to partners 
outside of NATO, such as Russia and Iran." 
MCELDOWNEY