US embassy cable - 03ANKARA4217

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 03 ANKARA 004217 
 
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 
THURSDAY, JULY 3, 2003 
 
 
THIS REPORT WILL PRESENT A TURKISH PRESS SUMMARY UNDER THREE 
THEMES: 
 
 
HEADLINES 
BRIEFING 
EDITORIAL OPINION 
 
 
--------------------------------------------- ------ 
HEADLINES 
 
 
MASS APPEALS 
Bob Kerrey: U.S., Turkey should organize Iraq summit in 
Istanbul - Hurriyet 
Iraq turning into Chechnya - Vatan 
Saddam's $140 million sent to U.S. Treasury - Vatan 
Ret. Gen. McCaffrey: U.S. will stay in Iraq for ten years - 
Sabah 
Gul: Repentance Law aims to end terror - Turkiye 
Erdogan: Turkey's military favors EU - Milliyet 
Portugal supports Turkey's EU drive - Hurriyet 
 
 
OPINION MAKERS 
Bush: We won't leave until Iraq is free - Radikal 
Bush: Change in Iraq will take time - Zaman 
Americans think Bush exaggerated facts on Iraq - Cumhuriyet 
Powell: Elimination of Saddam removed a threat to Israel - 
Zaman 
British union: Blair a war criminal - Cumhuriyet 
Labor unions parting ways with Blair - Radikal 
Algeria releases FIS leaders - Yeni Safak 
Berlusconi supports Turkey at European Parliament - Radikal 
 
 
BRIEFING 
 
 
Turkey, U.S., Iran cooperate against KADEK: Turkey is 
cooperating with the U.S. and Iran in order to bring an end 
to PKK/KADEK terror in Northern Iraq, papers report. 
Following the advice of Washington, Ankara is about to pass 
an `amnesty law' to convince PKK militants to lay down their 
arms and return home.  About half of the estimated 4,500 PKK 
militants in Northern Iraq have not been involved in armed 
attacks, and they will be allowed to return to their 
families, a senior diplomatic source told the press.  Turkey 
has asked the U.S. and Britain to take action against KADEK, 
and urged Iran to acknowledge that KADEK is a terrorist 
organization.  Militants who fled to Iran out of fear of a 
possible U.S. operation engaged in clashes with Iranian 
soldiers last weekend. 
 
 
Scope of Repentance Law: "Cumhuriyet" suspects that the 
`Repentance Law' drafted by the AKP government might pave 
the way for pardoning fundamentalists as well.  The paper is 
concerned that fundamentalists who killed secular Turkish 
intellectuals in Sivas in 1993 might benefit from the bill. 
Cumhuriyet points to the fact that only 775 terrorists had 
applied to benefit from similar laws passed since the 1980s. 
Meanwhile, the Kurdish-based party DEHAP collected one 
million signatures in a campaign for expanding the scope of 
the draft law to a general amnesty for all PKK militants. 
U.S. prefers Pole instead of Turk for NATO post: The U.S. 
has decided to support the Polish candidate for the post of 
NATO Deputy Secretary General instead of a Turk due to the 
disagreement between Washington and Ankara over the Iraq 
crisis, a "Hurriyet" columnist reports.  The U.S. also backs 
Greek Foreign Minister Papandreou as the new  NATO Secretary 
General in 2004.  The article expects Turkey not to object 
to Papandreou, a facilitator of problem-solving between 
Turkey and Greece, as the new NATO chief. 
 
 
New package of EU reforms: Dailies think that a 7th EU 
adjustment package drafted by the government includes 
`revolutionary' changes to make a `civilian and liberal' 
society a reality.  The new package envisages stronger 
measures to prevent torture and expand freedom of 
expression, and a more civilian National Security Council 
(NSC).  Foreign Minister Gul said details of the 7th package 
would be disclosed next week. 
 
 
EDITORIAL OPINION: 
-Pakistan 
-Iraq 
 
 
"Pakistan and Israel" 
Fikret Ertan wrote in the Islamist-intellectual Zaman (7/3): 
"Pakistan finally felt the need to revise its Israel policy 
in light of the new developments in the Middle East. 
General Musharraf has made some important statements which 
no previous Pakistani would have dared to make.  . 
Musharraf's encouragement of Pakistan's recognition of 
Israel is open to two interpretations.  One view is that 
Musharraf sincerely feels the need for a change of policy. 
The other possibility is that Musharraf is taking US 
pressure into account. . The fact is that Pakistan's Israel 
policy requires an urgent change, but Islamist groups in 
Pakistan will not allow it to happen.  The immediate 
reaction has already been seen among opposition groups. In 
fact, the Pakistani opposition must address the dilemma that 
Pakistan is facing: India has strategic relations with 
Israel, so how logical and sensible is it that Israel does 
not exist for Pakistan?" 
 
 
"Dancing with the US" 
Soli Ozel commented in mass appeal Sabah (7/3): "Turkey has 
missed the chance to have a say in northern Iraq by not 
acting together with the US during the Iraq war.  At the 
same time, however, Turkey to a great extent has learned to 
evaluate the Iraq issue beyond the narrow prism of 
hypothetical scenarios about the Kurds.  The Turkish Foreign 
Ministry has finally started creating policies for all of 
Iraq as opposed to limiting itself to a northern-Iraq 
obsession.  This will help Turkey not only in its relations 
with the US but also in the formulation of a better foreign 
policy.  This step is long overdue." 
 
 
PEARSON