ANKARA MEDIA REACTION REPORT

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 03 ANKARA 002776 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, APRIL 29, 2003 THIS REPORT WILL PRESENT A TURKISH PRESS SUMMARY UNDER THREE THEMES: HEADLINES BRIEFING EDITORIAL OPINION -------------- HEADLINES MASS APPEAL Rumsfeld: Rejection of decree was disappointing - Aksam Garner: I won't stay for long in Iraq - Hurriyet CHP defends Gul visit to Syria - Milliyet Ankara to advise Damascus to cooperate with U.S. - Milliyet Shiites' protest of U.S. growing - Aksam Kurdish control over Mosul to end - Aksam Tarik Aziz: Saddam is alive - Hurriyet Verheugen: Civilians must control military - Milliyet One of ten Greek Cypriots go to Turkish side - Vatan Tikrit celebrates first birthday without Saddam - Sabah OPINION MAKERS Subtle warnings from U.S. Congressional delagation - Cumhuriyet Iraqi leaders to Garner: U.S. must leave soon - Radikal Iraqi opposition to found National Congress - Zaman U.S. disarming peshmerge - Yeni Safak Powell to Damascus to break anti-Israel policy - Yeni Safak Greek Cypriots flow to Turkish side - Yeni Safak Government prepares 6th EU adjustment package - Radikal Verheugen: Role of Turkish military must be rearranged - Cumhuriyet FINANCIAL JOURNALS U.S. wants to scrap 13-year of sanctions on Iraq - Dunya Turkish firms to U.S., UK for Iraq - Finansal Forum BRIEFING Iraq: Dailies report Secretary Rumsfeld as saying at U.S. Centcom HQ in Qatar that the U.S. was `disappointed' with Ankara's rejection of the motion for cooperation with the U.S. in the war with Iraq. However, General Franks turned this disappointment into an advantage by ordering U.S. vessels to leave Turkish waters, Rumsfeld said. Papers also carry in detail meetings held by Congressman Robert Wexler, the Cochairman of the Turkey Caucus. Wexler said that the U.S. was `shocked' to see that Ankara was approaching Iran and Syria while the war with Iraq was going on, raising concerns in Washington that Turkey might join the `other front.' In a meeting with Wexler, opposition party CHP deupty Onur Oymen reminded Wexler that a former U.S. Secretary of State had paid 22 visits to Damascus, skipping SIPDIS Ankara each time, when Syria was openly supporting terrorism. Wexler said that Prime Minister Erdogan and Foreign Minister Gul reaffirmed Turkey's commitment to the strategic partnership with the U.S., and added that question marks about U.S. ties with Turkey had been removed. Foreign Minister Gul is due in Damascus, Syria on Tuesday. Turkey, Iran and Syria, neighboring countries with significant Kurdish populations, are worried that a division of Iraq might produce an independent Kurdish state. Ankara has been careful to avoid the impression of forming a bloc with Tehran and Damascus, but now aims to strengthen ties with them since the U.S. is ambiguous about the future of Iraq. Gul is expected to urge theSyrian leadership to reduce tension with the U.S., papers speculate. Cyprus: Greek Cypriots queued up for 13 km in their cars to visit the Turkish side on Monday. An estimated 100,000 Greek Cypriots crossed the border to the Turkish Cypriot sector in one week. The Greek Cypriot administration is expected to announce new incentives for Turkish Cypriots, such as granting work permits or allowing marketing of Turkish goods in South Cyprus. The Greeks are also considering a deal with Turkish GSM companies to expand mobile phone communication in Cyprus. The two communities on the island are expected to celebrate May Day together for the first time since 1974. Tuesday's TV reported that the Turkish Cypriot administration has decided to allow Greek Cypriots visiting the north to stay in hotels for up to three days. The Turks have also decided to open two new border crossings to ease passage of Greek Cypriots. New package for EU criteria: Papers report that Ankara is preparing new reforms to meet the Copenhagen Criteria, and thus begin accession talks with the EU in 2004. According to the package, the role of the National Security Council (NSC) will be restricted, and Article 8 of the anti-terror law -- one of the main obstacles to freedom of expression -- will be scrapped. The ban on Kurdish names will be removed, and broadcast in Kurdish will be allowed. International observers will be allowed to monitor elections in Turkey. Justice Minister Cemil Cicek said the government will cooperate with NGOs to meet the political criteria for accession. EU expansion commissioner Verheugen said that accession talks with Ankara could begin in the first half of ¶2005. Verheugen stressed that the significance of the military in Turkey is clear, but that new regulations are needed to rearrange the role of the TGS in politics. He added that no military representatives should take part in education and broadcast institutions. EDITORIAL OPINION: Post Saddam governance "Rebuilding Iraq" Turgut Tarhanli wrote in the liberal-intellectual Radikal (4/29): "It seems that the US is inclined to keep the United Nations out of the picture in the future of Iraq's political structure. As for the rebuilding, it is odd to see that American firms are given the major share in construction projects by the US, which happens to be the occupying force in the country. . It remains to be seen to what extent the US will be successful in establishing a legitimate political and administrative structure in Iraq while at the same time remaining as an occupation force. Initial signs are not promising though, because Washington is busy with correcting the remarks by a retired American general who is designated to be the chief of the Iraqi restructuring mission. . The question yet to be answered: How will the US be able to legitimize the restructuring process even though the operation itself was suffering from a lack of legitimacy to begin with?" "To take a look at Iraq once again" Omer Celik, an MP of the ruling AKP (and a close advisor to PM Erdogan) wrote in the tabloid Star (4/29): "Turkey did not see the full picture on the Iraq issue, and made a mistake when designing its `red lines.' Turkey viewed the entire issue through the prism of northern Iraq, and the northern Iraq issue itself was minimized to the `Turkoman card.' Northern Iraq is certainly more important to Turkey than to other countries in the region. However, the Turkish strategy for Iraq requires a wider perspective. . First of all, the military operation against Iraq has ended by turning the US into an immediate neighbor for Turkey. It seems that the US presence will be longer and will include a different strategy. . Turkey should pay attention to the policies the US will pursue in Iraq. It is very likely that, just as France and the UK adopted their models everywhere they went, the US will try to adapt its federal system to the conditions in Iraq. The US began the operation without legitimacy, so the legitimacy issue will have to be sorted out during the restructuring of Iraq. During this process, the US will be more `pragmatic' and `flexible' in its own red lines. As for Turkey, it is wrong to pursue a solid and static stance regarding Ankara's `red lines' which prevents Turkey from adapting itself to the regional dynamics. . Turkey is in a process which calls for the reevaluation of its regional perspectives." PEARSON