US embassy cable - 03ISTANBUL667

C O N F I D E N T I A L ISTANBUL 000667 
 
SIPDIS 
 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL: 05/08/2013 
TAGS: PREL, PGOV, TK, Istanbul 
SUBJECT: WOLFOWITZ AND PERLE REMARKS REVIVE DEBATE ON 
U.S.-TURKEY TIES 
 
 
Classified By: Consul General David Arnett for reasons 1.5 (b & d) 
 
 
1. (C) Summary: Recent remarks by DOD Deputy Secretary 
Wolfowitz and Defense Policy Board Member Perle have revived 
a rancorous public debate in Istanbul on the status of 
U.S.-Turkish relations.  Reactions to the May 6 Wolfowitz 
interview on CNN Turk also dominated our previously-scheduled 
May 7 meetings with a range of local contacts.  In 
characteristic Turkish fashion, a pro-U.S. NGO leader, a 
retired Admiral, and a local district mayor bristled 
self-defensively upon hearing criticism from a foreign 
quarter.  After some discussion and reflection, however, our 
contacts generally accepted the criticism (while maintaining 
that the USG had made mistakes of its own) and focused on the 
need to rebuild the damaged bilateral relationship.  End 
Summary. 
 
 
2. (C) The following comments provide a sample of the local 
reaction to DOD Deputy Secretary Paul Wolfowitz's remarks 
during a May 6 CNN Turk interview: 
 
 
- Retired 3-star Admiral Attila Kayat remarked that it was 
hypocritical and inappropriate for Wolfowitz to claim that 
the Turkish military should have taken a stronger (and hence 
"undemocratic") stand in the lead-up to the Turkish 
parliament vote on whether to allow U.S. troops to enter 
Turkey; 
- ARI Movement President Kemal Koprulu characterized the 
remarks as "blunt," and while admitting that Turkey had made 
mistakes before the vote, argued that the USG had made 
mistakes as well; 
- Nonplused, Beykoz District Mayor Alaattin Koseler (from 
former PM Ecevit's Democratic Left Party) asked how deeply 
felt Wolfowitz's opinions were within the USG in general. 
Though accepting of poloff's explanation that the remarks did 
not run contrary to the idea that Turkey and the U.S. 
remained close allies, Koseler voiced concern that Turkish 
public opinion would react badly regardless of the intended 
meaning. 
 
 
3. (C) After some discussion and reflection, however, both 
Kayat and Koprulu readily admitted that Turkey had made 
mistakes and that Wolfowitz had correctly focused on the need 
to rebuild the bilateral relationship.  Kayat was reluctant 
to hold his former military colleagues responsible, arguing 
instead that the Justice and Development (AK) Party 
government should have simply said "no" to the USG from the 
beginning, instead of making promises and engaging in 
negotiations over an assistance package.  Koprulu readily 
accepted that the GOT, the opposition Republican People's 
Party (CHP), the bureaucracy, and the military all made 
mistakes.  Both Koprulu and Kayat argued, however, that the 
USG's failure to "sell" its case for war to Turkey was a key 
element in the fateful parliamentary decision. 
 
 
4. (U) Defense Board member Richard Perle repeated some of 
Wolfowitz's points at a May 8 conference, and went on to 
openly criticize the inexperience of the new Turkish 
government and irresponsibility of the opposition CHP.  The 
questions following Perle's remarks on "whether Turkey would 
be forced to pay a price for not supporting the U.S." and 
"what Turkey would need to do to repair the relationship" 
reflect general concerns in Istanbul on the issue.  Perle 
responded that the U.S. has no plans for a retaliatory policy 
and called for both sides to rediscover mutual interests, 
undertake joint projects, and rebuild the damaged bilateral 
relationship.  By criticizing the regimes in Syria and Iraq 
as "undemocratic" and "supportive of terrorists" and 
expressing hope for rapid regime change in both, Perle 
implicitly warned against a Turkish policy which would ignore 
core U.S. interests and implied that this should be an area 
where Turkey and the U.S. work together. 
 
 
5. (C) Comment: The remarks by Wolfowitz and Perle have 
revived the underlying unease among our contacts in Istanbul 
regarding the strained U.S.-Turkish relationship. 
Ever-sensitive to foreign criticism, initial reactions were 
self-defensive, but if our contacts are any indication, 
further reflection may lead many here to look for productive 
ways to begin rebuilding the partnership. 
ARNETT