US embassy cable - 05ANKARA4607

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 05 ANKARA 004607 
 
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 
FRIDAY, AUGUST 5, 2005 
 
THIS REPORT PRESENTS THE TURKISH PRESS SUMMARY UNDER THREE 
THEMES: 
 
HEADLINES 
BRIEFING 
EDITORIAL OPINION 
--------------------------------------------- -- 
Friday, August 5, 2005 
 
HEADLINES 
 
MASS APPEAL 
Iraqi Constitution Gives a Green Light to Kurdish State - 
Sabah 
Financial Times: Villepin a Political Opportunist - Aksam 
Schroeder: Turkey a Historic Opportunity for EU - Hurriyet 
France to Declare 2006 `Armenia Year' - Milliyet 
London Attackers Used Home-Made Bombs - Milliyet 
Iran Postpones Nuclear Program - Milliyet 
Chalabi's Aide Killed in Baghdad - Sabah 
Arabs Lynch Jewish Terrorist - Hurriyet 
 
OPINION MAKERS 
US Gradually Establishing a Kurdish State in Iraq - 
Cumhuriyet 
EU Complains of Religious Freedoms in Turkey - Cumhuriyet 
France-Turkey Ties Strained over Cyprus Recognition - 
Radikal 
Nicosia, Encouraged by France, Threatens to Veto Turkey's EU 
Bid - Zaman 
Nicosia to Ankara: Recognize Cyprus without Delay - Radikal 
US to Set Up New "Democracy Centers' in Central Asia - Zaman 
Mayor Livingstone: Terror Will Stop if Iraq Occupation Ends 
- Yeni Safak 
Al-Zawahiri to West: Stop Stealing Our Oil, Resources - Yeni 
Safak 
Iraqi Constitution to Give Kurds Right to Self-Determination 
- Yeni Safak 
600 Percent Rise in Racist Attacks against Muslims in UK - 
Cumhuriyet 
Britain Helps Israel to Produce Nukes - Yeni Safak 
Israeli Soldier Shoots Dead 4 Arabs - Zaman 
Amnesty International Asks US about `Secret' Detention 
Centers Abroad - Cumhuriyet 
 
 
BRIEFING 
 
Edelman: Turkey Shifts Iraq Policy in Line with US Conduct: 
Mass appeal "Milliyet" carried a story highlighting remarks 
from Edelman hearing in Washington D.C.  The story follows: 
Eric Edelman, the former US Ambassador to Turkey and 
currently Defense Department U/S for policy and planning, 
responded to inquiries by the Senate Armed Services 
Committee at his confirmation hearing on June 29.  He said 
the following according to the minutes of the meeting: 
 
-- We were disappointed:  It was a huge disappointment to 
all of us in the US government at the time of the March 1 
vote.  It was an enormous disappointment.  But we have had 
very good cooperation with the Turkish government on a 
variety of other issues since the March 1 vote.  They helped 
maintain the ground links to our forces through the Habur 
gate, through which a tremendous amount of stuff for our 
forces flows.  They have provided overflight rights and have 
allowed Incirlik Air Base for refueling missions. 
 
-- Turks changed their policy:  Turks share with the US the 
goal of a stable, politically and territorially intact Iraq. 
I believe that, in time, Turks have changed their policy in 
a way to adjust with our policies.  Turkey is no longer 
merely voicing concerns over the Kurds in northern Iraq, but 
looks at Iraq from a wider framework and feels the need to 
cooperate more with the other elements of Iraq. 
 
-- Diplomacy First for Iran:  I do not believe that the 
recent presidential elections in the country were held in a 
free and fair way.  Because the appointed leadership made 
the decision about who could participate in the race and who 
could not.  Regarding Iran's nuclear program, the best 
approach will be to use diplomacy and support talks among 
Iran and the EU trio, namely Britain, Germany and France. 
If we can't succeed, then we may feel the need to look at 
other steps.  We are not there right now but at some point, 
we might think of applying sanctions against Iran or take up 
the issue to the UN Security Council. 
 
AKP Lawmakers May Vote against Turkey's EU Protocol:  Papers 
expect Prime Minister Erdogan to face a tough battle to 
convince his ruling AK Party lawmakers to vote for a 
protocol extending Turkey's customs union agreement with the 
EU to new members, including Cyprus.  Signing the protocol 
was a precondition for Turkey to start EU membership talks. 
AKP was planning to pass the customs union protocol by 
parliament in September, before the opening of EU talks on 
October 3.  "Aksam" claims that the `nationalist' lawmakers 
in AKP will vote against the protocol, together with the 
main opposition CHP.  "Aksam" warns that a crisis may erupt 
between Turkey and the EU similar to the one seen between 
Turkey and the US over the Turkish parliament's rejection of 
deployment of US troops in Iraq through Turkish territory in 
March 2003. 
 
Iraqi Constitution to Give Kurds Referendum Rights:  The 
draft Iraqi constitution envisages that Iraq's Kurds will be 
able to vote in a referendum on their future in eight years' 
time, Turkish papers report.  News commentaries voice 
concern that Kurds can decide to set up an independent state 
following that time limit.  Papers report that at a meeting 
in the northern Iraqi Kurdish city of Selahaddin yesterday, 
KDP leader Barzani, US Ambassador to Baghdad Khalilzad and 
the former PM Allawi decided to include in the draft 
constitution a provision granting the Kurds referendum 
rights on sovereignty.  Barzani said after the meeting that 
they have agreed to include in the Iraqi constitution the 
right for the Kurds to hold a referendum rights on self- 
determination in eight years.  Barzani also stressed that 
Kurds will never concede on federalism in Iraq.  Ambassador 
Khalilzad said the activities of the PKK in northern Iraq 
should not be allowed, warning against actions that may 
`disturb' Iraq's neighbors.  Turkish papers also report that 
last week, Kurds submitted to the Iraqi parliament a new map 
of Kurdistan in which the areas under the control of Kurds 
were expanded to cover Badra and Cassan towns 150 km south 
of Baghdad. 
 
High Military Council (YAS) Meetings End:  The Turkish High 
Military Council's (YAS) three-day meetings in Ankara on 
streamlining the Turkish military for the next decade were 
concluded on Thursday, papers report.  YAS also discussed 
promoting or retiring a few top military officials. 
Commander of naval forces Admiral Ozden Ornek and commander 
of the air force General Ibrahim Firtina will retire after 
completion of their term of service this year, to be 
replaced by Admiral Yener Karahanoglu and General Faruk 
Comert, respectively.  The Land Forces Commander Yasar 
Buyukanit is the strongest candidate for the post of the 
chief of general staff (TGS), which is currently being 
filled by General Hilmi Ozkok.  Ozkok's term of service ends 
next year.  The YAS meetings, presided over by PM Erdogan, 
examined the links of some officers in the military with 
unsanctioned religious fundamentalist groups and expelled 11 
officers for `improper conduct,' which is a code term for 
being involved in extreme Islamist activities.  Since AKP's 
accession to power, the YAS has expelled 47 members of the 
military for improper conduct.  Turkish law does not allow 
appeals for decisions made by the high military council. 
 
PKK-Affiliated Office in Tuzhurmatu:  The terrorist PKK- 
affiliated Democratic Solution Party has put a flag of 
`Kurdistan' on top of its office building in Tuzhurmatu on 
Thursday, reports "Hurriyet."  Tuzhurmatu, 70 km from 
Kirkuk, is a northern Iraqi city with a Turkmen majority, 
says the report. 
 
Turkish List of `Wanted' PKK Leaders:  Turkish Deputy Chief 
of the General Staff, General Ilker Basbug gave Washington a 
list of 150 wanted PKK militants in northern Iraq during a 
visit to the United States last month, "Aksam" reports.  The 
top 10 PKK leaders in the list are: People's Defense Forces 
commanders Dr. Bahoz Erdal, Murat Karayylan, Osman Ocalan, 
Cemil Bayik, Beritan Dersim, Irfan Amed (for Erzurum), Dr. 
Ali Zilan (Diyarbakir), Azad Siser (Hakkari), Riza Altun and 
PKK chairman Zubeyir Aydar. 
 
US to Set Up New `Democracy Centers' in Central Asia: 
"Zaman" carries a report by Turkey's semi-official 
"Anatolian Agency" (AA) that the US is preparing to set up 
new `Democracy Development Information Centers' in the 
Central Asian republics.  The US State Department has 
allocated USD 613,000 for five new centers in Kyrgyzstan. 
USD 540,000 have been reserved for Azerbaijan where training 
on institutionalization and effective propaganda campaigns 
will be provided.   USD 557,000 have been made available for 
Kazakhstan for information exchange and coordination among 
independent media organizations.  USD 887,000 will be given 
to Tajikistan for training of qualified personnel for radio 
stations, and media workers.  The report says that for the 
year 2005, the US State Department Bureau of Democracy, 
Human Rights and Labor has apportioned USD 43.7 million for 
democracy development centers in Central Asia. 
 
EU Complains about Religious Foundations' Situation in 
Turkey:  The European Commission on Thursday complained to 
Turkey in a letter about legislation on religious 
foundations which did not meet EU standards for the rights 
of non-Muslim communities, papers report.  `Freedom of 
religion is the highest priority for us and it will be an 
essential point during the entry talks with Turkey,' an EU 
spokesman said.  EU diplomats have said earlier that a draft 
bill aimed at easing property restrictions on Turkey's non- 
Muslim minorities was far from satisfactory.  The EU 
spokesman said Enlargement Commissioner Olli Rehn had 
contacted chief Turkish negotiator Ali Babacan on Wednesday. 
Ankara revised the draft bill once, but did not make 
sufficient changes, the spokesman said.  The EU letter to 
Turkey pointed to `serious problems' with regard to the 
management of the non-Muslim communities' foundations and 
property rights, say papers.  Deputy PM Mehmet Ali Sahin 
said yesterday that the EU was pressing Turkey to return to 
minority foundations 230 assets that have been sold to third 
persons.  Sahin noted that the return of the assets was not 
possible and that the government was considering 
possibilities for payment of compensations to non-Muslim 
foundations.  Sahin also claimed that freedoms granted to 
foundations of minority groups in Turkey were much broader 
than freedoms granted to similar foundations in EU 
countries, and accused the EU of pursuing double standards. 
 
"Kaide" Magazine Collected:  The prosecutor's office in 
Istanbul has decided that the first issue of a new magazine, 
"Kaide," will be collected in line with Turkish Press Law 
provisions before an investigation is launched against the 
periodical, papers report.  "Kaide" is being published by 
the radical Islamist group IBDA-C (Islamic Great Eastern 
Raiders) in support of Al-Qaida.  Its founders have said 
that they support the idea of El-Kaide `as a concept.' 
 
PKK Releases Abducted Soldier:  Outlawed PKK militants 
released a Turkish soldier in the Tunceli province of 
southeast Turkey on Thursday four weeks after abducting him, 
papers report.  The soldier, Coskun Kirandi, said he was not 
treated badly.  PKK militants had set up a road block on 
July 11 in Tunceli, stopped some 40 vehicles to check 
identity cards, and abducted Kirandi in one of the cars. 
PKK militants also kidnapped the mayor of a town in the 
eastern province of Bingol at the end of last month and 
released him on Monday.  Meanwhile papers claim that the PKK 
plotted the explosion in an Istanbul suburb of Pendik that 
killed two women on Wednesday night.  On Thursday, thousands 
in the city of Bursa attended the funeral of a soldier 
killed by a PKK landmine in eastern Turkey. 
 
 
EDITORIAL OPINION:  Iraq; EU Enlargement/Turkey 
 
"Games over Kirkuk" 
Erdal Guven wrote in the conservative-sensational "Halka ve 
Olaylara Tercuman" (8/5): "The US started gaining full 
control in Turkey's backyard while Turkey focused entirely 
on the EU process.  Kirkuk, a historically Turkish city is 
now undergoing `Kurdishization.'  The influx of Kurds to 
Kirkuk is a deliberate attempt to change the demographic 
records. . Moreover, the PKK militants are also part of this 
process because they are registered in Kirkuk city as well. 
The PKK militants who live under Barzani's protection are 
paid 100 to 250 dollars in exchange for registering in 
Kirkuk.  It is not easy to understand what exactly the US is 
trying to achieve in this area.  The US will never succeed 
if its aim is to create a demographic force against Turkey. 
Every attempt to insert Kirkuk into the Kurdish region is 
doomed to fail sooner or later even if Barzani tries to 
accomplish it with US support." 
 
"Government Goes on Vacation, Waits to See EU Moves" 
Murat Yetkin wrote in the liberal-intellectual "Radikal" 
(8/5):  "Turkey challenged the EU by making a declaration 
that it will not accept any new conditions for the start of 
accession negotiations. . The recent visit of Turkish 
Cypriot leader Mehmet Ali Talat to Turkey helped to 
demonstrate a consensus not to recognize the Greek Cypriot 
side as the representative of the Republic of Cyprus until a 
settlement is reached.  President Sezer, the government, the 
parliament, the Foreign Ministry and the General Staff all 
supported this view. . PM Erdogan's recent harsh statements 
indicated that Ankara is not willing to start accession 
talks with the EU at all costs.   Following those 
statements, PM Erdogan and some other top-notch officials 
went on holiday.  Why did Turkish officials decide to go on 
holiday despite the turmoil with EU affairs?   Turkey feels 
fully confident that all necessary conditions for the start 
of accession talks were met. . Turkish officials strongly 
believe that the ball now is in the EU court.  The leaders 
of the EU should be able to reach a compromise about the 
Cyprus issue and to decide whether their commitment made in 
December 17 is valid." 
 
"Europe Pressures Turkey" 
Cengiz Candar commented in the conservative-sensational 
"Dunden Bugune Tercuman" (8/5):  "Greece and the Greek 
Cypriot side did not use their veto power when Turkey was 
given a negotiation date on December 17.  They knew that any 
crisis in Turkey resulting in a change in the current 
government and a possibility of having a pro-Ataturk 
administration in charge would not serve their interests. 
Yet there is still a possibility that Greece and the Greek 
Cypriot side could use their right to veto on October 3. 
It is interesting that the Greek PM Karamanlis postponed his 
visit to Turkey until after October 3.  What happens if the 
Greek Cypriots, Greece, France or maybe Austria try to 
obstruct the start of the negotiations?  It is not possible 
for Prime Minister Erdogan to accept the recognition of 
Cyprus for the sake of ensuring the date for October 3.   If 
the EU process comes to a bottleneck it will shake the 
domestic power of the ruling AKP.  A bottleneck situation in 
the EU process might boomerang to the Union and shake them 
as well.  It is a clear disadvantage for the EU to alienate 
Turkey or to have a conflict with Turkey.  PM Erdogan should 
use this argument before the EU as a trump card.  There are 
some exciting days ahead until October 3." 
 
MCELDOWNEY