ANKARA MEDIA REACTION REPORT

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 03 ANKARA 001533 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 TUESDAY, MARCH 11, 2003 THIS REPORT WILL PRESENT A TURKISH PRESS SUMMARY UNDER THREE THEMES: HEADLINES BRIEFING EDITORIAL OPINION -------------- HEADLINES MASS APPEAL Bush congratulates Erdogan, asks him to hurry - Hurriyet Bush could not get decree guarantee from Erdogan - Sabah Protocol for bases opens door to U.S. troops - Hurriyet 9 more bases for U.S. troops - Vatan Erdogan puts forth Turkomen condition - Turkiye 9 new U.S. bases will `shield' southeast Turkey - Milliyet New Annan calendar for Cyprus - Aksam OPINION MAKERS Americans speed up military equipment transfer to border - Radikal UNHCR: War will bring humanitarian catastrophe to Turkey, Iran - Yeni Safak Pentagon signs Iraq reconstruction deal with Cheney- affiliated Brown&Root - Cumhuriyet World at crossroads: Russia, France insist on veto - Cumhuriyet Iraq war hits Blair first - Yeni Safak 5,000 Turkish troops inside northern Iraq - Cumhuriyet Erdogan will form new government quickly - Zaman FINANCIAL JOURNALS U.S. reserves $900 million for Iraq's post-war infrastructure - Dunya WB says 2003 budget will negatively affect growth - Finansal Forum BRIEFING Iraq: President Bush phoned AKP leader Erdogan to congratulate him on his election victory in Siirt, and urged him to hurry up with the decree for accepting foreign troops on Turkish soil. Erdogan declined to give a specific date for a parliamentary discussion of the decree, saying that the motion was of significance for the political future of the AKP. He voiced Turks' concern about remarks of U/S of State Grossman warning Ankara to avoid unilateral intervention in northern Iraq. Erdogan also complained that the Turkomen have been left out of the Iraqi opposition council. He stressed that leaving northern Iraq's administration to a KDP-PUK coalition was unacceptable for Turkey. Dailies claim that Ankara has given the U.S. permission to set up nine bases for logistics and maintenance within the framework of the deal on modernization of Turkish bases that was approved by the parliament last month. American personnel will be subject to Turkish law and will carry ID cards approved by Turkish commanders when they leave the bases. Americans will be allowed to carry light weaponry for security and protection of their equipment, according to the papers. Cyprus: UN Secretary General Annan has offered a new timetable to Cypriot leaders Papadopoulos and Denktas during their meeting yesterday at The Hague. According to the new calendar, negotiations would continue until March 28, and Greece, Turkey and UK will have to compromise on the UN plan by March 31. A referendum would then be held on both sides of the island on April 6. Meanwhile, Erdogan's criticism of Annan for allegedly `deceiving'Ankara rocked The Hague, especially the Greeks and Greek Cypriots. Erdogan has said that the UN should not expect concessions only from the Turkish side, and noted that there was no change in the third plan regarding the sovereignty rights of Turkish Cypriots. Meanwhile, opposition parties in the Turkish Cypriot sector have announced plans to organize a referendum on the Annan plan on March 30. EDITORIAL OPINION: Iraq/US-Turkey "The clash of two calendars" Sami Kohen notes the nuances between Turkish and American agenda priorities in the mass appeal Milliyet (3/11): "The special election in Siirt province has paved the way for Erdogan's premiership. The reason for the huge international press interest is simply because of the two urgent and pending issues -- Iraq and Cyprus. The world is anxious to see the policies that the new AKP government will pursue. . The general observation about the Iraq policy can be summarized as follows: The Erdogan government will present a second resolution to the parliament, but it will not hurry. Ankara likely will wait for a second UNSC resolution, which is due by March 17. According to a story in the Washington Post, Turkey's final decision will be made on March 19. Yet it remains unclear whether the Bush administration will be patient enough to wait until that date. There is a contradiction between Turkey's calendar and the US's hurry. A similar contradiction is also valid on the Cyprus issue." "End of story" Fehmi Koru argued in the Islamic-intellectual Yeni Safak (3/11): "This is the most critical week which will shape the future of the Iraq issue. Washington imposed a deadline of March 17 to Iraq, and is exerting pressure on Ankara to bring a second authorization to the parliament before that date. However, the war-mongering lobby in Washington is not as strong as it used to be. First of all, the Turkish parliament did not take Washington's bluff seriously. Evidently, Washington did not have a `plan B.' . Moreover, the war-mongering lobby has received another serious blow. Father Bush, according to a story in the British `The Times,' advised President Bush `not to act unilaterally and try to make things up with the European countries.' . In the meantime, what we see is not only President Bush and the war- mongerers are facing problems, but also British PM Blair's political career is at stake. It looks as if we are close to the end of the story, as long as Turkey continues to resist." PEARSON