IRAQ: TURKEY'S U/S ZIYAL ON GC/TRIBES VISITS,

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 03 ANKARA 006028

SIPDIS


E.O. 12958: DECL: 09/23/2013
TAGS: PREL PTER MARR MOPS ETRD ETTC TU IZ
SUBJECT: IRAQ: TURKEY'S U/S ZIYAL ON GC/TRIBES VISITS,
"KURDISH CORPS," PROMOTING TURKMEN, AND NEED FOR SECOND
BORDER GATE

REF: A. ANKARA 6027

B. ANKARA 5930

C. ANKARA 5680

D. ANKARA 5553


Classified by Ambassador Eric Edelman. Reasons 1.5 B and D.
ACTION REQUEST at para 4.


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Summary
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1. (C) On Sept. 23, Turkish MFA Undersecretary Ziyal and
Ambassador discussed a range of Iraq issues. Ziyal said
Iraqi tribes and the visiting Governing Council delegation
told the Turks they did not want more foreign troops in Iraq.
However, if Turkey sent troops, the Turks should be distinct
from US forces with a clearly different mission. Ziyal also
reported hearing that a "Kurdish Corps" of 19,000 peshmerga
with heavy weapons was being set up on Iraq's borders with
Turkey and Iran, a development Ziyal said would lay the basis
for Kurdish secession in Iraq. (We request clairification on
this issue - see para 4). He complained about the KDP's
"arbitrary" attitude about operations on the Iraqi side of
the Habur gate. Ziyal noted that the Habur border crossing
had reached its capacity, and urged the US and Turkey to
begin talks on a second border crossing. Pointing to the new
Iraqi Turkmen Front leadership, Ziyal stressed Iraq's Turkmen
have a contribution to make and need help from the CPA and
the Iraqi Kurds to make it. End Summary.


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Tribes and GC Say No Foreign Troops
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2. (C) MFA Undersecretary Ugur Ziyal and the Ambassador
discussed Iraq issues Sept. 23. Ziyal said the Iraqi tribes
told the Turks that if Turkey sent troops to Iraq, they
should be distinct from US forces and the Iraqi people should
know the Turks had a different mission. But basically, Ziyal
said, the Iraqis do not want foreign troops. These themes
were repeated to the Turks by Ahmed Chalabi and the Governing
Council (GC) that visited mid-Sept. Ziyal said that despite
this and the GC delegation's reluctance to welcome a Turkish
contribution, Turkey continued to believe an invitation from
the GC important.


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Turkey Wants Agreement w/US on Timeline, Future of Iraq
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3. (C) If Turkey is going to send troops, Ziyal told the
Ambassador, Turkey and the US must agree in advance on the
broader political objectives: What kind of Iraq are the
troops there to protect? What is the timeframe for the troop
presence and for setting up sovereignty? What is the exit
strategy? He added that there must be agreement on the
Turkish area of responsibility, and on lines of communication
(LOC). Implying the need for a LOC running through northern
Iraq, Ziyal said that a LOC through Syria would be
impossible. Ziyal reported that all Iraqis mention the
importance of a rapid transfer of sovereignty, and that
Turkey understands that there is a process involved. The
constitutional process in particular, must go smoothly, he
said. Ziyal then warned that he heard elections might be
conducted based on presentation of ration cards. He
cautioned that could be counterproductive, as cards may have
changed hands/been bought or traded in the market place.


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Rumor of a 19,000 Strong Kurdish Corps
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4. (C) Ziyal told the Ambassador he had heard that a "Kurdish
Corps" of 19,000 Iraqi Kurds with heavy weapons was being set
up on Iraq's borders with Turkey and Iran. Such a
development, he worried, would establish the basis "for the
Kurds to go their own way. And they've made no secret that
is what they want to do, although they say the time is not
right yet." ACTION REQUEST: Please provide information we
can share with the GOT on use of any sizable numbers of
Kurdish troops on the borders, whether as border guards,
elements of the new Iraqi army or other. It will help us to
be able to tell Ziyal whether there are concentrations of
Kurdish troops on the border, and if so, in what capacity and
under whose command.


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Habur at Capacity - Need Second Gate
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5. (C) Ziyal told the Ambassador that the Habur Gate has
reached its capacity, that it will soon be renovated, and
that renovation will decrease capacity at the crossing for a
number of months. The demand for capacity will increase, and
considerably if Turkish troops deploy to Iraq. Therefore,
Ziyal said, it was time to begin discussions about a second
border gate. He said Turkey would like to start talks now.
To open a new gate, 30 kilometers of new road, a bridge and
housing for customs/border employees will need to be
constructed. The Ambassador replied that it would be useful
to begin discussions about a second gate, but first we needed
CPA coordination of the issue with the Iraqis to ensure they
could meet the needs of establishing a second gate. Ziyal
said he hoped CPA would not be coordinating with the same
Iraqis (i.e., the KDP) that have an interest in blocking the
project or collecting illegitimate fees, and that it would be
best if the matter were worked directly with the Iraqi MOI.
The Ambassador told Ziyal that we needed to work together on
both sides of the border to speed the inspection process.
(COMMENT: This might provide an opening to pursue our
previous proposal to simplify procedures between Turkey and
Iraq. See Ref C.)


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Turkey to Let Iraqi Businessmen Visit w/out Travel Docs
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6. (C) Ziyal said there would be a trade fair in Diyarbakir
on Sept. 27-28, and that a group of Iraqi businessmen had
been invited. Many of them would not have travel documents.
The GOT wanted the USG to ensure the KDP let them cross the
border into Turkey to attend the event. Ziyal complained
that the "arbitrary attitude" of the KDP at the border
crossing was problematic. The KDP realized that the
situation in Iraq meant many people traveled without complete
or valid documentation - in fact, many of the Iraqi Kurds
came to Turkey without valid travel documents. It was wrong,
he asserted, to force travelers to Turkey that the Turks were
willing to accept to pay special fees or go to Baghdad to buy
documents. This sort of implementation of border
regulations, he said, was not helping the Kurds. Ziyal noted
that some of the GC delegation members came to Turkey without
valid travel documents. The Ambassador said we would help if
we could, and urged Ziyal to get all the relevant information
about the businessmen to us and to CPA in Baghdad (see Ref
A).


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Turkmen Have Contribution to Make - Work w/New Leaders
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7. (C) Noting that the Kirkuk Turkmen Congress had selected a
new Iraqi Turkmen leadership, that was set up without
Turkey's help and was "really on their own," Ziyal complained
that previously, the Iraqi Turkmen Front (ITF) had been
pushed out of any meaningful role by the US military, which
saw the ITF as an extension of Turkey. As a consequence,
Ziyal claimed, all Iraqi Turkmen had been excluded. He said
that having the same level of representation as the Assyrians
had left a bad taste in Iraqi Turkmen mouths. The new
Turkmen Front leader is, Ziyal said, more capable than the
previous chairman. The US should, he urged, help the new
Turkmen leadership get their people into the administration
to represent the needs of the Turkmen community. Ziyal
(strictly protect) complained that GC member Songul Chapuk
was extremely unimpressive, seemed uninformed and changed her
position back and forth on key issues. (COMMENT: Although we
have had no contact with Chapuk, we have heard from other
sources, including Turkish ministers, that she is quite
capable.)



8. (C) Deputy Undersecretary Ali Tuygan added that the
Turkmen had been punished by a low percentage of
representation and by the quality of the people chosen to
represent them. The Ambassador replied that we took note of
the changes resulting from the Kirkuk Congress and would see
over time how that change manifested itself in Iraqi
politics. The objective, the Ambassador stressed, should be
to move away from numbers and percentages of sectarian
representation and toward a time when all peoples there think
of themselves as Iraqis. After the formal meeting, in a
one-on-one with the Ambassador, Ziyal admitted that Turkish
policy regarding the Turkmen had been a mistake. However,
Ziyal said, the Iraqi Turkmen do have a significant
contribution to make. They will need help from the CPA and
the Kurds to make it. The decisions at Kirkuk represented
real change, Ziyal insisted, and he hoped that those changes
would find resonance in the US approach to the Turkmen.



9. (U) Baghdad minimize considered.
EDELMAN