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Cablegate: Ankara Media Reaction Report

Published: Wed 16 Apr 2003 12:54 PM
This record is a partial extract of the original cable. The full text of the original cable is not available.
UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 03 ANKARA 002491
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
SUBJECT: ANKARA MEDIA REACTION REPORT
WEDNESDAY, APRIL 16, 2003
THIS REPORT WILL PRESENT A TURKISH PRESS SUMMARY UNDER THREE
THEMES:
HEADLINES
BRIEFING
EDITORIAL OPINION
-------
HEADLINES
MASS APPEALS
Powell: Disappointed with Turkey, now it's history - Aksam
2004 Elections oblige Bush to suspend war with Syria - Vatan
Syria rift: Bush vs. Rumsfeld - Turkiye
Opposition rolls sleeves for new Iraq - Sabah
Turkish builders eye $20 billion Iraqi market - Milliyet
Athens aims to by-pass Denktas - Hurriyet
Turkey's 50-year Cyprus policy now bankrupt - Tercuman
EU pressures Turkey on `political criteria' - Aksam
Nasiriyah summit disappoints Garner - Aksam
Iraqis oppose to U.S. troops in Mosul, 10 civilians killed -
Turkiye
U.S. troops fire on Mosul civilians, 10 dead - DB-Tercuman
ONW to leave Turkey - Tercuman
OPINION MAKERS
EU puts focus on NSC, torture in Turkey - Radikal
Greek Cypriots in EU: Ankara should be proud - Radikal
Greek Cypriots in EU: Cyprus problem deepened - Zaman
Gul won't attend EU signing ceremony - Cumhuriyet
U.S. troops massacre protesters in Mosul - Yeni Safak
Kurds force Arabs out of villages - Yeni Safak
Iraqi Shiites expect sovereignty - Zaman
FINANCIAL JOURNALS
Turkish businessmen lobby in U.S. for Iraqi market - Dunya
Turkey still hopeful for tourism season - Finansal Forum
BRIEFING
Iraq: Dailies give extensive coverage to SecState Powell's
meeting with the foreign press at the FPC on Tuesday. The
U.S. was disappointed by the Turkish parliament's rejection
of the foreign troops decree, but was also pleased by the
Turks' opening an air corridor to support the campaign
against Iraq, Powell said. He noted that consultation with
Turkey would continue on regional issues, and that the U.S.
has been taking into account Ankara's sensitivities
regarding Northern Iraq. Powell added that he had not yet
decided on the Congress-approved $1 billion grant for
Turkey, which was tied to Turkish troops' not going into
Northern Iraq, and stressed that he would consult the U.S.
Treasury and international financial institutions before
releasing the money. Papers comment that U.S. sources'
view that these remarks as meaning that the U.S. would
review Turkey's economic policy and discuss it with the IMF.
Meanwhile, papers report that PUK peshmerges, through
looting and intimidation, are forcing Arabs in Kirkuk to
leave their homes. KDP leader Barzani has called on Kurds
exiled during the Saddam regime to return to their homes.
The Turkomen complained about Turkish liaison reports from
the region which implied that conditions in Mosul and Kirkuk
are stable. The Turkomen claim that peshmerges have
destroyed deed records and aimed to cleanse the region of
Turks. The TGS announced on Tuesday that 1,166 U.S. troops
deployed in Turkey within the framework of the ONW mandate
have started to leave.
EU: Mainstream papers find it `sad' that Turkey, after
having waited for 44 years to join the European family, will
today have to merely watch the accession of ten countries
that had no democracy or free market economy until the
1990s. EU leaders agree that Turkey's EU membership will be
extremely difficult if a solution to the Cyprus problem is
not reached before 2004. Launching the fiercest criticism
of Ankara's policies on the EU and Cyprus, "Radikal" carried
front-page photos of Turkish Prime Ministers since 1974,
saying (sarcastically) that they should be `proud' of the
pain Turkey is suffering today. All papers are pessimistic
on Cyprus, pointing out that Ankara will have to debate the
Cyprus issue with the EU once the Greek Cypriots are
admitted to the union. The EU has approved a new Accession
Partnership Accord with requirements for Turkey: Ankara
should support efforts for a solution in Cyprus; more is
expected in the government's fight against torture; prison
conditions should be improved; the National Security Council
(NSC) should be put under civilian control; freedom of
expression should be expanded and restriction on the press
should be removed; the right to education and broadcast in
mother tongues, including Kurdish, should be guaranteed. If
Turkey meets these requirements, accession negotiations with
the EU will begin in December 2004. The Greek government
said that Greek Cypriots would not attempt to block Ankara's
EU accession if the Cyprus problem is resolved.
Cyprus: "Hurriyet" reports that in an effort to by-pass
Denktas, Greek Prime Minister Simitis has invited Turkish
Cypriot opposition leaders to a meeting in Southern Cyprus
to discuss the future of the island. Three opposition
parties have accepted the invitation. Simitis is expected
to highlight the benefits of EU accession for Cyprus, and
also offer the issuance of Greek Cypriot passport to Turks.
Denktas strongly criticized the Simitis initiative. On the
other hand, Denktas said that Foreign Minister Gul, in order
to protest the Greek Cypriots' accession drive, should not
have gone to Athens at all. The AKP leadership condemned
Denktas' statement, saying that the Turkish Cypriot leader
had `gone too far.'
EDITORIAL OPINION:
a) Post war scenarios
b) Cyprus and Turkish foreign policy
"Transformation and Pax Americana"
Cengiz Candar wrote in the conservative "DB-Tercuman"
(4/16): "This is the beginning of a grand transformation
process. It is also clear that the building of a `Pax
Americana' is in the works and the initial steps are being
taken in the Middle East. .. As British writer William
Shawcross stated in one of his King's College speeches, the
US is the only power capable of preserving and developing
the liberal, democratic world. The US is a driving force
for progress also in the Islamic world. I know this might
be upsetting for many, including Arabs and the Europeans,
but this is the reality and it cannot be changed."
"Syria is next, but."
Hasan Cemal opined in mass appeal Milliyet (4/16): "It is
for sure that the Syrian regime is the next target, but it
is also unlikely that a military operation against Syria is
imminent. The US seems to be giving priority to diplomatic
pressure. In fact, Washington has already started pushing
the Damascus regime to end its support for terrorist
organizations. It remains to be seen whether the Syrian
regime is going to change voluntarily. . If Syria manages to
change by itself without the use of force, and if
Palestinian-Israel peace is achieved, these developments
might even create pressure on Iranian fundamentalists and
encourage the reformists."
"To look and to see"
Semih Idiz observes a major failure of Turkish foreign
policy in mass appeal Aksam (4/16): "Turkish foreign policy
is experiencing an utter failure at this point. Turkey has
turned into a loser both at the UN and the EU -- not only on
the Cyprus issue, but on the Iraq issue as well. This fact
does not mean that Turkey should start whining with a
`nobody wants me' sentiment. Turkey better be thinking
about the reasons for its alienation in the international
arena, and come up with a rational solution. Yet this
approach requires vision - discerning eyes that can not only
look, but also can see. However, current developments on
both Cyprus and Iraq clearly prove that Turkey is suffering
significantly from a lack of vision."
PEARSON
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