Identifier
Created
Classification
Origin
03ANKARA1345
2003-03-01 20:25:00
CONFIDENTIAL
Embassy Ankara
Cable title:  

IRAQ: TURKISH PARLIAMENT REJECTS U.S. TROOP

Tags:  PREL PGOV MOPS TU IZ 
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This record is a partial extract of the original cable. The full text of the original cable is not available.
C O N F I D E N T I A L ANKARA 001345 

SIPDIS


FOR (D) ARMITAGE, (P) GROSSMAN, (EUR) JONES
NSC FOR HADLEY, FRIED
OVP FOR EDELMAN
OSD FOR WOLFOWITZ, FEITH
JCS FOR CJCS MYERS
TREASURY FOR U/S TAYLOR


E.O. 12958: DECL: 03/01/2013
TAGS: PREL PGOV MOPS TU IZ
SUBJECT: IRAQ: TURKISH PARLIAMENT REJECTS U.S. TROOP
DEPLOYMENT

(U) Classified by Ambassador W. Robert Pearson. Reasons: 1.5
(B) and (D).


C O N F I D E N T I A L ANKARA 001345

SIPDIS


FOR (D) ARMITAGE, (P) GROSSMAN, (EUR) JONES
NSC FOR HADLEY, FRIED
OVP FOR EDELMAN
OSD FOR WOLFOWITZ, FEITH
JCS FOR CJCS MYERS
TREASURY FOR U/S TAYLOR


E.O. 12958: DECL: 03/01/2013
TAGS: PREL PGOV MOPS TU IZ
SUBJECT: IRAQ: TURKISH PARLIAMENT REJECTS U.S. TROOP
DEPLOYMENT

(U) Classified by Ambassador W. Robert Pearson. Reasons: 1.5
(B) and (D).



1. (U) On March 1, in closed session, the Turkish Parliament
rejected a motion that would have allowed the U.S. to deploy
troops for operations against Iraq. Of the 533 members
present, 264 voted in favor and 250 against. 19 MPs
abstained. Article 96 of the Constitution requires that an
absolute majority of the MPs present support a motion to
secure passage.



2. (U) Speaker Bulent Arinc adjourned Parliament until
Tuesday, March 4. Though there are time limits for the
resubmission of law that fail to pass parliament, motions are
not subject to such limits. Therefore, it is possible for
the GOT once again to bring this motion to Parliament for a
vote. Whether the GOT will pursue this option, however, is
not predictable at this moment.



3. (C) The failure to secure the necessary votes to pass the
motion is a serious blow to the AK government -- in
particular to AK leader R. Tayyip Erdogan, who had put his
prestige as party leader behind the motion's success. Ahead
of the vote, the opposition Republican People's Party (CHP)
had made it clear that its MPs would vote against the motion
as a bloc. CHP has 177 members of Parliament and the
governing AK Party has 363. We do not yet know the party
membership of the 16 members of Parliament who were not
present for the vote. Nonetheless, at least 90 AK MPs, or
approximately 25 percent of the AK parliamentary delegation,
failed to support the government.


PEARSON