TURKISH PM GUL'S JANUARY 6 VISIT: IN PUBLIC

S E C R E T AMMAN 000143

SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: DECL: 01/07/2013
TAGS: PREL TU IZ JO
SUBJECT: TURKISH PM GUL'S JANUARY 6 VISIT: IN PUBLIC
STATEMENTS BOTH SIDES STRESS NEED TO AVERT WAR, MAINTAIN
IRAQI TERRITORIAL INTEGRITY


Classified By: Ambassador Edward W. Gnehm. Reasons 1.5 (b,d).


1. (U) Turkish Prime Minister Abdullah Gul met with King
Abdullah and Jordanian PM Ali Abul Ragheb January 6 in Amman,
in the third stop of Gul's trip through the region. The
visit was given prominent above-the-fold coverage in all of
the Kingdom's Arabic and English dailies. Press accounts,
quoting generously from PM Abul Ragheb, stressed the two
countries' agreement to "speed up efforts to peacefully
resolve the deadlock between Iraq and the U.S., avoiding a
war in the region." A one-page official statement noted that
the two sides had agreed that "all efforts exerted to resolve
the crisis should be made under the umbrella of the UN."


2. (U) Following his meeting with PM Abul Ragheb, Gul held a
press conference in which he stated: "All our efforts are
being made to prevent a war from erupting in the region whose
repercussion would be very dramatic." He added that "the
official policy of the Turkish Republic is to preserve the
unity of Iraq's territory and that the entire Iraqi people
benefit from the riches of Iraq." The official Jordan News
Agency, Petra, quoted PM Abul Ragheb as saying that any
military action would have "very negative consequences on
regional peace, security and economy." The Jordanian PM,
according to Petra, also reiterated "the Kingdom's position
rejecting the use of its territories and airspace in any
'aggression' against Iraq."


3. (S) As reported separately, the King was much more
constructive in his private remarks to his Turkish visitor
than Jordan's public statements would indicate. The
Jordanian government is clearly still wary of moving away
from its longstanding public position, which unsurprisingly
shows considerable deference to widespread opposition among
Jordanians to conflict with Iraq.

GNEHM