US embassy cable - 05ANKARA5727

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 04 ANKARA 005727 
 
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 
SUBJECT: ANKARA MEDIA REACTION REPORT 
THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 29, 2005 
 
 
THIS REPORT PRESENTS THE TURKISH PRESS SUMMARY UNDER THREE 
THEMES: 
 
HEADLINES 
BRIEFING 
EDITORIAL OPINION 
--------------------------------------------- -- 
 
HEADLINES 
 
MASS APPEAL 
Hughes Asks Gul for Turkish Support to Restore US Image - 
Hurriyet 
Hughes: Democracy, Human Rights Shared by US, Turkey - 
Hurriyet 
Turkish Women to Hughes: War Cannot Bring Democracy - Sabah 
Hughes: PKK Absolutely the Same as al-Qaida - Aksam 
Women's Criticism of Iraq War Demoralizes Hughes - Tercuman 
EU: Turkey Must Accept `Genocide' for EU Membership - Sabah 
Erdogan: EU Decision Won't Affect Turkey's Aspirations - 
Sabah 
Ankara: Any Deviation from EU Membership Unacceptable - 
Milliyet 
Bombings in Tal Afar, Najaf Kill 13 - Star 
`Torturer' Private England Receives 3-Year Prison Term - 
Star 
Two PKK Terrorists Killed in Diyarbakir - Sabah 
 
OPINION MAKERS 
Gul to Hughes: Handle Cyprus, PKK Issues to Win Our Hearts - 
Yeni Safak 
Ankara Urges Hughes on Concrete Steps against the PKK - 
Cumhuriyet 
Hughes: Turkey an Inspiration on Religious Tolerance - Yeni 
Safak 
Hughes Listens to Koran Recital at Topkapi - Yeni Safak 
Erdogan: EU Must Prove It's Not a Christian Club - Yeni 
Safak 
Turkey to Buy 172 Used German Tanks - Cumhuriyet 
Straw: Operation against Iran Out of the Question - 
Cumhuriyet 
Israeli Attacks Continue in Gaza, West Bank - Yeni Safak 
Russia Enhances Cooperation with Central Asian States - Yeni 
Safak 
New Mass Grave Found in Srebrenica - Yeni Safak 
 
BRIEFING 
 
Hughes Visits Ankara, Istanbul:  Karen Hughes, 
Undersecretary of State for Public Diplomacy, met with 
Foreign Minister Abdullah Gul and Turkish Foreign Ministry 
(MFA) Undersecretary Ali Tuygan in Ankara yesterday.  `We 
are aware that US policies in Iraq have created reactions in 
the region.  That's why President Bush has asked me to learn 
about the feelings in the region's countries,' Hughes 
reportedly told Gul.  FM Gul emphasized that US steps to 
fight the PKK and remove international sanctions on northern 
Cyprus can help overcome the disappointment Turks feel about 
the US.  Hughes responded to Gul by saying that all 
institutions of the US Government have been mobilized to 
address PKK terrorism.  `We see the PKK as a terrorist 
organization and condemn it as much as we do al-Qaida. 
Turkish nationals are being killed every week.'  Hughes 
added that the US deemed it important that Turkey contribute 
to the bid to improve the image of the US in the region.  In 
a press conference after the meeting with Tuygan, Hughes 
stressed that Turkey and the US, united by common values 
such as democracy, respect for human rights, and women's 
rights, need each other.  Hughes later met with 
representatives of women's NGOs in Ankara.  Most of the 
women who spoke at the meeting with President Bush's `image 
guru' focused on the Iraq war.  `This war is really bringing 
all the positive efforts by the US to naught,' said one 
woman activist.  She said it is difficult to talk about 
cooperation between women in the US and Turkey as long as 
Iraq is under occupation.  `In every photograph that comes 
from Iraq,' she added, `you can see the look of fear in the 
eyes of the women and children.  This needs to be resolved 
as soon as possible.'  A Kurdish women's rights activist 
said that war caused a situation in which the rights of 
women are ignored, and that poverty is increased.  She also 
criticized the arrest of US anti-war activist Cindy Sheehan 
at a protest in front of the White House earlier this week. 
Hughes defended the decision to wage war against Iraq, 
saying it was a difficult moment for President Bush, but was 
necessary to protect the US.  `No one likes war,' Hughes 
said, `but to preserve the peace, sometimes it is necessary 
to go to war.'  She also claimed that women in Iraq are 
better off now than they were under the rule of Saddam 
Hussein, saying that women had been tortured, raped, and 
killed in saddam's Iraq.  Hughes later flew to Istanbul for 
meetings with religious leaders as part of an effort to 
promote interfaith dialogue.  In Istanbul, Hughes toured the 
Topkapi Palace, where she held an `interfaith dialogue' with 
Muslim, Orthodox, Roman Catholic, and Jewish leaders. 
Hughes told the press before the meeting that President Bush 
had specifically asked her to meet with religious 
representatives.  `This is because religious leaders can 
offer a hand to thousands and can contribute to an 
atmosphere of tolerance,' she said.  Hughes noted that she 
was impressed by the `warmth and hospitality' of the Turkish 
people.  `We are identical in many ways.  Our people give 
high priority to democracy, family life, and religion,' she 
said.  Hughes added that the American people appreciated the 
aid sent to the US from Turkey in the aftermath of Hurricane 
Katrina.  Istanbul Director of Religious Affairs Mustafa 
Cagrici commented that Turkey and the US are similar 
societies that value democracy and family life.  Patriarch 
Mesrob Mutafyan underlined that the clash of civilizations 
between West and East is a matter of concern for his church. 
`We have to discuss ways to prevent clashes.  For this 
reason, I find it highly essential to continue meetings of 
religious leaders,' Mutafyan said.  The Vatican's Turkey 
Representative George Marovich noted that Turkey is like a 
garden of different flowers.  `In the 1800s, the Ottoman 
Sultan ordered the construction of a mosque, a synagogue, 
and a church next to each other.  Such a practice did not 
exist in Europe then. This tolerance comes from the Holy 
Koran.'  Hughes said after the meeting that Turkey could be 
a source of inspiration for tolerance for the rest of the 
world. 
 
EU Parliament Asks Turkey to Recognize Cyprus, Accept 
Armenian Genocide:  The EU Parliament yesterday postponed a 
vote to approve Turkey's extended customs union with the EU, 
and passed a non-binding resolution saying that Turkey must 
recognize Armenian `genocide' claims after entering into 
full membership negotiations with the European bloc.  Papers 
agree that the decisions adopted by the European Parliament 
a couple of days before the scheduled opening of EU 
accession negotiations with Turkey will trigger a serious 
crisis between Ankara and Brussels.  Europe is testing 
Turkish patience, trying to persuade Ankara to accept a 
`second-class' membership status, papers argue.  Many 
writers warn that Ankara's reluctance to recognize Cyprus 
may lead to a suspension of accession negotiations.  The 
European Parliament also drew attention to the charges filed 
against prominent Turkish novelist Orhan Pamuk as an example 
of problems with freedom of expression in Turkey, and 
demanded changes to the Turkish penal code.  The EU 
legislature also called on the EU to abide by its promises 
to end the isolation of Turkish Cypriots.  The Islamist 
media claim that the EU is inclined to reject Turkey because 
of its Muslim identity.  `If the EU is not a Christian club, 
then it should prove it,' Prime Minister Erdogan told a news 
conference in Abu Dhabi, where the Turkish PM is on a state 
visit.  `EU membership for Turkey, with its predominantly 
Muslim population, will set up a bridge between the EU and 
the Muslim world,' Erdogan stressed, `and it will be the 
beginning of an alliance of civilizations.'  The decision of 
the European Parliament is not binding, Erdogan noted. 
`What matters more for Turkey is the decision of EU foreign 
ministers on the framework document,' the PM said. 
 
AKP Reacts to Washington Times Article:  On Wednesday, the 
ruling AK Party reacted to a claim by Frank J. Gaffney, Jr. 
in the "Washington Times" that the AKP is taking Turkey down 
the path of `Islamofascism.'  In an interview with the semi- 
official Anatolian News Agency, Egemen Bagis, an advisor to 
the PM, said that the allegations by Gaffney were nothing 
but `slanders and denigration.'  `Such an imaginary term 
like Islamofascist does not suit Turkey,' Bagis said.  PM 
Erdogan said in response to the WT op-ed that no one had the 
right to `defame Turkey and its prime minister.'  The 
Gaffney article, published in the WT on Tuesday, charged 
that 'Prime Minister Erdogan is systematically turning his 
country from a Muslim secular democracy into an 
Islamofascist state governed by an ideology anathema to 
European values and freedoms.' 
 
Iraqi Turkmen Party Criticizes ITF call to Boycott 
Referendum:  Iraqi lawmaker and the Secretary-General of the 
Turkmen Brotherhood Party, Walid Shirkah, criticized a 
statement by the Iraqi Turkmen Front (ITF) calling on the 
Turkmen not to take part in the constitutional referendum on 
October 15.  Shirkah said that the ITF should stop 
`imposing' its will on the Turkmen and reconsider its failed 
policies, according to a daily published by the Patriotic 
Union of Kurdistan (PUK). 
 
Barzani: Kurds May Open Representation in Ankara:  Iraqi 
Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP) Chairman and the regional 
President of Kurdistan, Massoud Barzani, said that the Kurds 
had the right to open a representation office in Turkey as 
part of the Iraq Embassy `when Kurdish interests so 
require,' according to "Cumhuriyet."  In a statement to the 
"Kirkuk-Kurdistan" webpage, Barzani said that the new Iraq 
constitution gives the Kurds the right to open official 
representations at Iraqi embassies in Ankara, Damascus, and 
Tehran.  Barzani also claimed that the draft constitution 
will pave the way for Kirkuk to be included in the Kurdish 
region through a referendum.  Barzani noted that the `time 
has not come' for the second option of establishing a 
separate Kurdish state. 
 
Turkey to Buy German Leopard-II Tanks:  Turkey began 
bargaining with Germany to buy 172 used Leopard-II tanks 
after Berlin scrapped its condition that the German weapons 
not be used in southeast Turkey, "Cumhuriyet" reports.  The 
few remaining `rough edges' have been smoothed over at the 
talks after the German Defense Ministry approved the sale. 
On the other hand, talks with the US for the sale of 
Abrahams-I tanks have ended due to the `technical 
inadequacy' of the tanks. 
 
Police Kill Two PKK Terrorists:  Turkish troops killed two 
PKK fighters on Wednesday after a tip-off that they were 
about to launch an attack in two towns in the southeastern 
province of Diyarbakir.  Security forces shot dead two PKK 
militants in a suspicious car that did not stop at a 
roadblock.  Three policemen were wounded.  Two Kalashnikov 
rifles, some ammunition, and two hand-grenades were found in 
the car. 
 
 
EDITORIAL OPINION: 
 
"This is not Binding Either, But." 
Sami Kohen commented in the mainstream daily "Milliyet" 
(9/29):  "Just as we said about the EU counter-declaration, 
we can say that yesterday's decision by the European 
Parliament is not legally binding on Turkey.  But the EU 
Commission and the EU Council of Ministers will be affected 
by the Parliament's decision.  So even though the decision 
isn't binding, we would still be wise to consider it 
seriously.  Among yesterday's decisions there are both 
pleasing and disturbing elements.  For example, the call to 
end the isolation of TRNC is a positive development. 
Likewise, the rejection of the `privileged partnership' 
thesis is something that Turkey is pleased with.  The 
negative decisions center around the Armenian and Cyprus 
issues.  We need to study carefully the reasons why Turkey 
is facing such a hard time in international platforms, even 
though these platforms may not have any legal effect in 
Turkey's relations with the EU." 
 
"Why Do Americans Keep Coming to Turkey" 
Mustafa Balbay wrote in the leftist-nationalist "Cumhuriyet" 
(9/29):  We started the year 2005 with a flood of official 
visitors from the US.  It seems that we'll be ending the 
year with a similar flood.  Deputy Assistant Secretary of 
State Matt Bryza came to Turkey twice within a month, and 
revealed that he is going to marry a Turkish girl.  CENTCOM 
Deputy General Lance Smith and EUCOM commander General James 
Jones came on the same day some time ago.  Bush's National 
Security Advisor Stephen Hadley said he visited Ankara on 
his first trip abroad as a way to show how important Turkey 
is to the US.  The latest visitor was State Department 
Undersecretary Karen Hughes.  All of these people are 
welcome, but why did they come?  Each visitor talked about 
the PKK, said the  time had come to deal with it, etc.  We 
believe that the US, instead of fighting against the PKK, is 
trying to draw Turkey closer to itself under the guise of 
doing something about the PKK.  During all these visits, 
Turkey has repeated its concerns about the huge PKK presence 
along the Turkey-Iraq border.  US officials have said they 
will fight against the PKK, but also presented certain 
demands from Turkey behind closed doors.  What are these US 
demands?  In short the answer is: the same things they were 
demanding before March 1.  The US wants to expand the use of 
Incirlik air base; to use Turkey's infrastructure for its 
regional operations; to use at least two ports on the Black 
Sea; and free passage from the straits in contravention of 
the Montreux Convention.  They insist that these demands be 
met without approval by the Turkish Parliament.  The US 
views Turkey as an aircraft carrier in the region, and seeks 
to use it for its various purposes.  That is why the US 
doesn't want Turkey to sink, or to change its course to 
thwart US intentions." 
 
MCELDOWNEY