US embassy cable - 03ANKARA3918

C O N F I D E N T I A L ANKARA 003918 
 
SIPDIS 
 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL: 06/18/2013 
TAGS: PGOV, PREL, PTER, IS, TU 
SUBJECT: AMERICAN JEWISH COMMITTEE VISIT TO ANKARA, JUNE 6, 
2003 
 
 
Classified by Ambassador W. R. Pearson for reasons 1.5 (b) 
and (d). 
 
 
1.  (C)  Five members of the American Jewish Committee (AJC) 
including Harold Tanner, president, Shula Bahat, chief 
operating officer, Stanley Bergman, board member, Marian 
Bergman, board member and Barry Jacobs, director of strategic 
studies visited Ankara on Friday, June 6 to meet with senior 
GOT officials Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Foreign 
Minister Abdullah Gul, President Ahmet Necdet Sezer and 
General Hilmi Ozkok, as well as AK Vice Chairman for Press 
Murat Mercan. 
 
 
2.  (C) Tanner delivered a message to Turkish interlocutors 
that the Middle East Peace Road Map may change regional 
dynamics, just as the fall of Iraq changed many things in the 
region and suggested that without the fall of Iraq, there 
might not have been an opportunity to restart the peace 
process.  He cautioned that the new dynamic places a greater 
burden on Turkey to define its place in the world order. 
 
 
3.  (C) High-level Turkish interlocutors reiterated 
consistently similar themes to Tanner at each visit.  Erdogan 
noted the importance of the AJC and praised its efforts on 
behalf of Turkey in Washington.  He also stressed that Turkey 
could play a major role in the Middle East, commenting that 
Gul was planning to visit Sharon and Abu Mazen and that he 
himself planned to make a follow on trip to the region.  Gul 
said Turkish-Jewish relations 
 
 
 
 
                                   disappointment in Turkey's 
level of support for the war in Iraq, but argued that Turkey 
is able and willing to be a valuable partner for the U.S. on 
Iraq, as well as Iran and the Middle East Roadmap.  In 
response Tanner advised the damage to the U.S.-Turkey 
relationship can be repaired, but with actions, not words. 
Reacting to Gul's comment that Turkey has no objection to a 
resolution on the Armenian issue as long as the word 
"genocide" is not used, Jacobs said the AJC will continue to 
lobby against an Armenian genocide resolution, but it will be 
more difficult to defeat than in previous years. 
 
 
4.  (C) Tanner thanked Ozkok, his last appointment of the 
day, for what he described as a summation of Turkey's foreign 
policy and recommended that Ozkok (i.e., the Turkish 
government) suggest things they can/are doing.  Ozkok 
described the current rift (with the U.S.) as a 
"misunderstanding" and insisted Turkey "could and should play 
an important role in Iraq."  Observing that the Armenian 
genocide issue posed bilateral and multilateral challenges 
for Turkey, Ozkok asserted that Turkey is very careful in its 
dealings with Iran and Syria since they are immediate 
neighbors. Tanner cautioned that members of Congress were 
surprised, hurt and offended that a strategic partner such as 
Turkey had not supported the U.S., which would make it much 
harder to defeat the Armenian genocide resolution this year. 
Tanner recommended that Turkey help with the humanitarian and 
infrastructure rebuilding of Iraq.   Concluding the meeting 
with Ozkok, the Ambassador suggested that it would be helpful 
if Turkey explained what it considered to be legitimate 
activities, i.e., refueling or training, that could be 
conducted at Incirlik, 
PEARSON