US embassy cable - 03ANKARA1702

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 ANKARA 001702 
 
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 
TUESDAY, MARCH 18, 2003 
 
THIS REPORT WILL PRESENT A TURKISH PRESS SUMMARY UNDER THREE 
THEMES: 
 
 
HEADLINES 
BRIEFING 
EDITORIAL OPINION 
                         ------- 
 
 
HEADLINES 
 
 
MASS APPEAL 
Bush to Saddam family: Leave or fight - Hurriyet 
Bush to Saddam: Leave or I'll strike - Vatan 
Second Bush War - Sabah 
Turkish leadership says `Yes' to U.S. - Sabah 
Powell to Gul: Now or never - Aksam 
First refugee flow toward Turkish border - Hurriyet 
U.S. money depends on troops decree - Milliyet 
UN inspectors leave Baghdad - Turkiye 
 
 
OPINION MAKERS 
Powell to Gul: Decide before Saturday - Radikal 
Bush goes mad, disregards UN - Yeni Safak 
Countdown to war; decree to parliament again - Zaman 
Iraqi civilians move toward Turkish border - Cumhuriyet 
Markets aflame - Radikal 
 
 
FINANCIAL JOURNALS 
U.S., UK giants to control Iraqi oil after war - Dunya 
War fear hits markets - Finansal Forum 
 
 
 
 
BRIEFING 
 
 
Iraq: Turkey's political leadership agreed at a summit 
meeting at the presidency on Monday that war is inevitable, 
and decided to take to parliament a second decree for 
deployment of foreign troops on Turkish territory. 
"Radikal" claims Secretary Powell called Foreign Minister 
Gul to urge him for a decision by Saturday.  The Council of 
Ministers will convene in an extraordinary session today, 
and the decree will be taken to parliament before the vote 
of confidence for the Erdogan cabinet.  Papers expect the 
motion to be voted on by the parliament on Thursday. 
Commentators agree that Erdogan will have a difficult time 
trying to convince his deputies that Turkey's interests 
require working together with the U.S.  Dailies say the AKP 
leadership has asked the U.S. to put into effect the 
military, political, and economic cooperation package once 
the motion is approved.  Dailies report U.S. officials 
issuing clear warnings about possible damage to U.S.-Turkish 
relations at the American-Turkish Business Council meetings 
(ATC) in Washington.  Iraqi opposition groups will meet in 
Ankara at a summit meeting Tuesday under the auspices of 
Turkey and the United States.  Northern Iraqi Kurdish groups 
will voice concern about a possible unilateral Turkish 
intervention in the region, and Iraqi Shiite and Arab 
representatives are expected to join discussions on a post- 
war Iraq tomorrow.  Ankara will seek to secure a place for 
the Turkomen in a post-Saddam administration.  Commentaries 
fear that Kurds, Arabs and Turkomen might engage in Balkan- 
type ethnic fighting over Kirkuk, the oil-rich town in 
Northern Iraq.  Residents have started evacuating Kirkuk and 
Mosul, and are fleeing to the north near the Turkish border, 
according to reports. 
 
 
EDITORIAL OPINION:  Iraq 
 
 
 "Along with the war, authorization issue is back" 
Hasan Cemal wrote in mass appeal Milliyet (3/18): "Realizing 
the urgency, the government now has two options:  Asking for 
parliament's approval for both the deployment of troops and 
airspace rights following the vote of confidence, or moving 
the motion through parliament ahead of the confidence vote. 
Yet the financial markets cannot sit and wait to see which 
option is taken.  We have already seen the initial signs of 
instability in the markets. . Secretary Powell gave a clear 
message by saying that `the time for diplomacy has ended.' 
Following the ultimatum from George Bush, Ankara is now once 
again seized by the issue of the decree.  Bearing in mind 
the urgency, the government will probably go for the second 
option.  The summit at the Presidential Palace acknowledged 
that war is imminent and inevitable.  Yet the real question 
is this: wouldn't it have been more appropriate if Turkey 
had taken these steps earlier?" 
 
 
"Declaring the loser" 
Fehmi Koru argued in the Islamic-intellectual Yeni Safak 
(3/18): "The war-mongering trio did their best to take 
others to their side.  Moreover, the world witnessed an 
unprecedented method of threats, blackmail and false 
information.  Yet the US, the UK and Spain did not get any 
support for their war project except from each other.  This 
is clearly a defeat for the war-mongering lobby.  The war, 
even though it targets a very hated man like Saddam Hussein, 
failed to gain international support.  Thus the project can 
be implemented, but will suffer from a lack of vitality.  If 
they begin the war as they now threaten to do, the very 
first bullet will turn the US and UK into defeated powers in 
the eyes of the world." 
 
 
PEARSON