VERHEUGEN OFFERS STRONG SUPPORT DURING TURKEY

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 03 ANKARA 005113

SIPDIS

DEPARTMENT FOR EUR/SE

E.O. 12958: DECL: 09/10/2014
TAGS: PGOV PREL PHUM TU
SUBJECT: VERHEUGEN OFFERS STRONG SUPPORT DURING TURKEY
VISIT, DESPITE CONCERNS

Classified By: Classified by Deputy Polcouns Charles O. Blaha; reasons
1.4 b and d.


1. (C) Summary: During an intense September 4-9 visit to
Turkey, EU Enlargement Commissioner Verheugen stressed his
support for opening accession talks with Turkey in 2005, even
stating flatly in one meeting that the EU will set a date for
talks at the December Summit. However, Verheugen also warned
that some other EU commissioners are less supportive of
Turkey, and the Commission's October Progress Report on
Turkey will reflect a consensus view. Verheugen privately
warned PM Erdogan and Deputy PM and FM Gul against pursuing
legislation that would criminalize adultery, and then went
public with this concerns when his warning went unheeded.
Though Verheugen consistently praised GOT human rights
reforms, he also called for further progress and pointedly
told one interlocutor that Turkey remains far behind the 10
new EU member states in human rights. Erdogan and Gul
pledged to continue the reforms after starting accession
talks. Verheugen said he is concerned about possible Greek
Cypriot opposition to Turkey's EU candidacy, though the
Cyprus issue should not influence the EU decision in
December. Most NGO leaders and representatives of non-Muslim
religious communities said they favor the opening of
accession talks, despite Turkey's human rights shortcomings,
though one NGO president claimed there has been no progress
on torture. End Summary.

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Upbeat Verheugen Gets Warm Reception
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2. (C) Asif Amin, DCM at the Danish Embassy; Thomas Bagger,
political and press counselor at the German Embassy; and Sema
Kilicer, political officer at the EU Representation to
Turkey, all told us they had never seen Verheugen so positive
about Turkey, nor Turks so positive about Verheugen, than
during this visit. Verheugen made it clear to Erdogan and
Gul that he personally favors the opening of accession talks
in 2005. He supports the inclusion of a strong
recommendation to that effect in the EU Commission's October
Progress Report on Turkey. However, he warned that some
commissioners are not supportive of Turkey, and the report
will reflect a consensus view. (Note: Kilicer (please
protect) told us that, based on the portions of the draft
report she has seen, it will include a mix of positive and
negative information, leaving it up to the EU Council to
interpret. End Note). He also promised his Turkish
interlocutors across the board that the EU will make a firm
decision in December, ending the uncertainty that has long
surrounded Turkey's candidacy. Verheugen was greeted warmly
by the Turkish public; aside from an anti-EU demonstration by
nationalists in Izmir, there were no signs of the suspicion
noticeable during previous visits. This was especially true
in the southeast, where local residents displayed signs
welcoming him in several languages, including Kurdish, and
sought to kiss his hand. Kilicer speculated that this
rock-star treatment may have gone to his head; by the end of
his visit he was less cautious in his statements about what
the EU will offer Turkey. Verheugen assured trade union
representatives in Istanbul September 9 that, while he cannot
say so publicly, the EU in December will definitely set a
date to begin accession talks.

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Verheugen: Turkey Lags Behind New EU Members
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3. (C) At the same time, Verheugen made clear that Turkey
will have to continue improvements in human rights reforms,
particularly regarding religious freedom and implementation
of reform legislation. Turkey has made spectacular progress
in recent years, he said, but still falls short of EU
standards in some respects. Erdogan and Gul accepted this,
and even averred that they need the EU to maintain pressure
on Turkey to give them political cover to continue the
reforms. They asserted that the EU Commission report on
Turkey should be clearly positive, in light of the progress
made. Anything less will be deemed unfair by the Turkish
public, and will complicate further progress. The reforms
are overdue and in Turkey's interest, and the GOT will
continue them after starting accession talks. During the
trade union meeting, Turk-Is Confederation President Salih
Kilic argued that the EU should have long ago opened
accession talks with Turkey, and asked why the 10 new member
states jumped the line ahead of Turkey. Verheugen, according
to Kilicer, gave a blunt reply: "Do you really want to know?
In the 10 new member states, minority rights are protected,
people have the right to use their mother tongue, torture is
not tolerated, and there are no destroyed villages. Don't
ask me to compare Estonia and Hungary with Turkey."

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Adultery Ban Is "Political Dynamite" in Europe
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4. (C) According to Amin and Bagger, Verheugen told EU heads
of mission in Ankara September 6 that he would discuss the
GOT's proposed legislation criminalizing adultery only in
private (Note: See septel for report on legislation. End
Note). While the matter is not part of the Copenhagen
Criteria and is officially unrelated to Turkey's candidacy,
Verheugen said the idea of criminalizing adultery smacks of
Islamic law (Sharia),and contradicts the Western concept of
a modern state. He called the issue "political dynamite" and
said it has done grave harm to Turkey's image in Europe.
Shortly after Verheugen raised the issue in private with
Erdogan, the PM made a public statement vowing to press ahead
with the legislation. That prompted Verheugen to go public
September 9, telling the press, among other things, that the
legislation "can only be a joke." Kilicer told us it is
unclear whether criminalizing adultery would violate the
European Convention on Human Rights. The Council of Europe
has informally determined that such legislation could violate
Article 8 of the Convention, which protects the right to
respect for private and family life. Amin said Dutch
Ambassador Gosses will meet with Gul to warn him against
pursuing the legislation.

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Greek Cypriots Could Be Spoilers
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5. (C) Verheugen told Erdogan and Gul that Cyprus will not
affect the EU's decision in December, which is the EU's
official position. However, he acknowledged to EU
ambassadors that he is concerned about the potential role of
the Greek Cypriots as spoilers. Nicosia has been inflexible
in its opposition to EU efforts to relieve the isolation of
the TRNC, and has lately been making disturbing noises
indicating Turkey should be required to fully recognize the
Republic of Cyprus in order to open accession talks.
Verheugen repeatedly criticized the Greek Cypriots throughout
his comments, drawing the ire of the Greek Ambassador.
Verheugen said the October Progress Report will note the
presence of Turkish troops on Cyprus, but will offset this
with reference to Turkey's support for the Annan Plan.

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Minority Religious Leaders Favor Accession
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6. (C) Verheugen told leaders of the non-Muslim religious
communities in Istanbul September 9 that they have an
important role to play in helping the EU determine the state
of religious freedom in Turkey. European Christian
Democrats, in particular, are keenly interested in the status
of Christians in Turkey. Several religious leaders outlined
the problems they face due to the fact that their religious
institutions lack legal standing. Representatives of the
Greek and ARMENIAn Orthodox churches said they continue to
face difficulties in their efforts to attain legal ownership
of church properties, despite reforms designed to ease
restrictions (Note: See septel for detailed report on
property issue. End Note). According to Kilicer, the
religious leaders disagreed on a number of issues relating to
the nature of their problems, but stressed uniformly that
they favor the opening of accession talks, which they believe
will lead to further reforms. "We didn't come here to cry on
your shoulder," Monsignor Louis Pelatre, Latin Vicar
Apostolic Bishop of Istanbul, told Verheugen. "There are
problems here, but we love Turkey."

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NGO: Torture Remains "Systematic"
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7. (U) The majority of NGO leaders shared that support for
accession talks in their meeting with Verheugen. But Yavuz
Onen, president of the Human Rights Foundation (HRF),caused
a stir by claiming HRF statistics indicate an increase over
last year in torture, which he believes is still "systematic"
in Turkey. Verheugen countered that he believes torture
remains "widespread" but is no longer "systematic" (Note:
This is our conclusion as well, as reflected in the Human
Rights Report over the past couple of years. End Note).

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Comment
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8. (C) Verheugen's interactions during an intense week in
Turkey reveal the complex currents surrounding Turkey's EU
candidacy. Like many observers, both internal and external,
Verheugen is inspired by the GOT's impressive reforms, which
he wants to encourage. At the same time, his concerns about
the adultery legislation and his comments about the
differences between Turkey and the 10 new EU member states
demonstrate that he is aware of the distance that still
separates Turkey from the Western democracies. The warm
greeting he received in the troubled southeast reflects the
desperation of Turks who see the EU as the only hope for
relaxing the restrictions imposed on them by a rigid,
overbearing State.


EDELMAN