US embassy cable - 03ANKARA820

S E C R E T ANKARA 000820 
 
SIPDIS 
 
 
DEPT. FOR P, EUR, EUR/SE, NEA AND NEA/NGA; 
NSC FOR AMB. KHALILZAD 
 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL: 01/30/2013 
TAGS: PREL, MARR, PREF, PHUM, TU, IZ 
SUBJECT: NORTHERN IRAQ: PAVING THE WAY FOR MULTI-PARTY 
TALKS (IV) - TURKS UNRECEPTIVE TO MEETING WITH NON-ITF 
TURKMEN 
 
 
REF: A. DEUTSCH-KHALILZAD TELECON 1/30/03 
     B. ANKARA 629 AND PREVIOUS 
     C. STATE 18029 
 
 
Classified by DCM Robert Deutsch.  Reasons 1.5 b and d. 
 
 
1. (S) DCM raised possible configurations for Feb. 6 
multi-party talks (per Ref A) in successive bilats 
(US-Turkey), trilats (US-Turkey-KDP/PUK) and quads 
(US-Turkey-KDP/PUK-Turkmen) with MFA Deputy Director General 
for Middle East Affairs Safak Gokturk Jan. 31 (DG Burcuoglu 
was attending a National Security Council meeting addressing 
US military requests re Iraq and was therefore unavailable). 
Gokturk said he would have to pass the information to more 
senior levels for decision, but had the following initial 
reactions.  It would not be acceptable for Turkey to have a 
session with the US, Turkey, the KDP, the PUK, the ITF plus 
another Iraqi Turkmen party.  The KDP, he said, must 
reconcile itself to dealing with the ITF in a working 
relationship.  This point, Gokturk continued, had been 
strongly raised with KDP leader Masoud Barzani by 
Undersecretary Ziyal on January 9.  In response to Barzani's 
assertion that the ITF did not represent all Iraqi Turkmen, 
Gokturk told us, Ziyal said "you do not have a choice.  You 
must cooperate with the ITF."  If there was good will, 
Gokturk added, meeting with the US, PUK, Turkey and the ITF 
was something the KDP could do. 
 
 
2. (S)On the possibility of two separate trilaterals (one 
US-Turkey-KDP/PUK and one US-Turkey-ITF) Gokturk said that 
such meetings might need to take place in the future on 
specific issues, but for a session like the one we envisaged 
that sought to lay out the way forward and avoid snags we 
needed to have all the parties together.  The symbolism, he 
said, was significant, and Turkey did not want to be seen as 
concerned only with Iraq's Turkmen.  As PM Gul had stated, he 
went on, Turkey is concerned with the welfare and security of 
all Iraqis, including the Kurds who are the Turks' bretheren. 
 "At this kind of a meeting, sanctioned and attended by two 
allies, with leaders of major groups coming here and meeting 
prior to important developments, we see no place for 
pseudo-Turkmen representatives in order to satisfy the KDP. 
That is not a way out.  I'm sure my superiors will say that 
would be inconceivable. 
 
 
3. (S) Acknowledging that Gokturk needed to seek guidance 
from senior officials, DCM urged the Turks to give the 
proposals some thought and noted that we are trying to bring 
the Iraqi Kurds in to see the role the US and Turkey feel 
they need to play based on our close consultations about 
possible devlopments in Iraq.  DCM asked that the Turks get 
back to us with reactions and/or counter-proposals soonest. 
 
 
4. (S) Comment: While not necessarily the last word from the 
MFA, there was no flexibility on the Turkish side in this 
exchange.  We believe Gokturk's points accurately reflect 
what his superiors will say.  We may need to take another 
look at ways to get all of the required parties face-to-face 
and will have to do so quickly if this is to happen next 
week.  End Comment. 
PEARSON