US embassy cable - 03ANKARA4355

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 ANKARA 004355 
 
SIPDIS 
 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL: 07/10/2013 
TAGS: PREL, PGOV, PINS, TU 
SUBJECT: TURKISH MILITARY AND OPPOSITION CHP CONTINUE 
ANTI-U.S./ANTI-RULING AKP CAMPAIGN OVER IRAQ INCIDENT 
 
(U) Classified by Ambassador W.R. Pearson.  Reason: 
1.5(b)(d). 
 
 
1. (U) Action request -- para 10. 
 
 
2. (C) Summary: While some of the Turkish press continues 
to fan anti-U.S. and anti-ruling AK party sentiment, other 
papers are featuring sources which point to charges that 
Turkish Special Forces were engaged in activities in Iraq 
inimical to cooperation with the U.S.  President Sezer 
issued an unhelpful statement and opposition CHP, a 
mouthpiece for military views, continued its emotionally 
-laden anti-U.S./anti-AK rhetoric in Parliament.  In 
parallel with public statements by P.M. Erdogan and F.M. 
Gul underscoring the importance of good relations with 
the U.S., ranking AK party officials have privately 
continued to emphasize the party and government's 
commitment to good bilateral relations.  At the same 
time, AK officials appeal for a USG statement recognizing 
the AK government's responsible stance. 
Action request: That Washington use the joint commission 
final statement to reward those who have worked to maintain 
close relations with the U.S. in the face of a concerted 
effort to undermine them.  End summary. 
 
 
3. (U) Sensationalist articles about the alleged mistreatment 
of the Turkish Special Forces (TSF) detainees, NATO-sourced 
charges against TSF actions in Northern Iraq, and reporting 
on the first day of discussion in the joint U.S. military-TGS 
fact-finding commission dominated the Turkish press July 10. 
 
 
-- Mainstream "Hurriyet" ran a front-page photo of 
wrist-burns sustained by one detainee when he was handcuffed 
by U.S. troops.  The photo is captioned "We will never forget 
these marks." 
 
 
-- Opposite the photo is a separate story that claimed "only 
the quick-thinking" of the TSF commander averted an armed 
clash with U.S. forces.  One Turkish officer asserted that 
U.S. troops fired a bullet past his head even after he showed 
that the Turks had laid down their weapons. 
 
 
4. (U) Most papers also highlight detailed charges against 
the TSF unit by "NATO sources," who asserted that Turkey had 
been warned repeatedly against providing weapons and military 
training to the Turkmen.  The sources claimed that retired 
TSF officers and "Turkish nationalists" had been brought to 
 
SIPDIS 
Northern Iraq to provoke tension between the Turkmen and the 
Kurds. 
 
 
-- The NATO sources reportedly said that the July 4 incident 
began with the raid of a building 25 km from Suleimaniya 
where members of the unit were training Turkmen in the use of 
explosives.  U.S. forces then surrounded and entered the TSF 
office in Suleimaniya, where they discovered Turks dressed in 
civilian clothes and not carrying identification.  They also 
found weapons that were "not in Turkey's inventory." 
 
 
-- These discoveries, according to the report, prompted U.S. 
forces to "treat the detainees as terrorists." 
 
 
5. (U) Most papers describe a "positive atmosphere" in the 
opening meeting of the joint commission.  "Hurriyet" 
columnist Sedat Ergin, who is close to the TGS, predicted 
that a joint statement on the commission's findings would 
likely be released July 11 or 12.  Establishment 
standard-bearer "Cumhuriyet" asserted that the joint 
statement will focus on "establishing mechanisms to ensure 
that such incidents are not repeated."  All papers report 
that leader of the U.S. delegation Gen. Sylvester will travel 
to Northern Iraq to consult with the U.S. commanders who 
carried out the raid. 
 
 
-- However, center-left intellectual "Radikal" columnist 
Murat Yetkin, long a conduit for military views, described 
the joint talks as "tense," and wrote that it is "unlikely" 
that the disagreement can be overcome in the short term. 
Yetkin predicted that although some Turkish military liaisons 
may continue to work with U.S. forces in Northern Iraq, the 
vast majority of Turkish units will be forced to withdraw 
very soon. 
 
 
-- President Sezer, speaking out on the issue for the first 
time -- and on the sixth day of a crisis that  showed signs 
of quieting down for the past two days -- termed the U.S. 
action "inexcusable." 
 
 
-- Papers report that during the first meeting of the joint 
fact-finding commission, the Turkish side denied the U.S. 
allegations. 
 
 
6. (C) Seeking a meeting with us at the Embassy, Tuncer 
Bakirhan, Chairman of the pro-Kurdish DEHAP Party (the Sinn 
Fein of the PKK/KADEK), asserted to us July 10 that "hawks" 
in the Turkish NSC and military are trying to undermine the 
AK government's efforts to pass a workable reintegration law 
that would be attractive enough to bring PKK/KADEK members 
down from the mountains.  Bakirhan asserted that tthe "hawks" 
are using the Iraq incident to promote their own interests in 
keeping the Kurds under pressure. 
 
 
7. (C) Kemal Koprulu, head of the Ari Movement, a leading 
centrist NGO well-connected with the Establishment, told the 
Ambassador July 10 that hard-line elements of the military, 
aided by President Sezer and other establishment/Turkish 
State elements, are fanning the flames in the media to put 
the pressure on AK as part of an effort to bring it down. 
Koprulu suggested that this effort appears more sophisticated 
than the military's 1997 "post-modern" coup d'etat against 
the then Islamist-led government. 
 
 
8. (C) Parliamentary NATO committee chairman Vahit Erdem, who 
joined AK after a 36-year career in the most elite parts of 
the Turkish State bureaucracy, told us July 10 that, given 
P.M. Erdogan's inexperience, he (Erdem) was pleasantly 
surprised at how well Erdogan has maintained a responsible 
posture during this latest crisis and in the face of open 
provocations from the military, press, and opposition CHP. 
Turkey needs the U.S. and the U.S. can take advantage of 
Turkey's regional experience, and maintenance of close 
relations is thus crucial, Erdem added. 
 
 
9. (C) AK party vice chairman for foreign policy Saban Disli 
alerted us July 10 to FonMin Gul's public reiteration to the 
National Economic Council of the importance of good relations 
with the U.S. and the need to await the results of the joint 
commission.  In appealing for the USG publicly to praise the 
AK government's responsible approach as a way to cut the legs 
from under the anti-government/anti-U.S. campaign, Disli 
added that P.M. Erdogan plans to underscore again the need 
for close relations with the U.S. on national TV the evening 
of July 10. 
 
 
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Action Request 
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10. (C) Septel describes today's mil/mil commission meetings 
and the first step towards drafting a joint commission 
statement.  We need to make sure that the outcome supports 
those -- the P.M. and F.M. first among them -- who have tried 
to moderate the reaction and keep open the possibility of 
solid bilateral relations in the face of a severe and 
continuing pressure campaign. 
PEARSON