TURKISH AMBASSADOR TO IRAQ BELIEVES CONSTITUTION

C O N F I D E N T I A L ANKARA 004009 SIPDIS E.O. 12958: DECL: 06/29/2015 TAGS: PREL PGOV TU IZ SUBJECT: TURKISH AMBASSADOR TO IRAQ BELIEVES CONSTITUTION DRAFTING DEADLINE WILL HOLD Classified By: Charge d'Affaires Nancy McEldowney for reasons 1.4 (b) a nd (d). ¶1. (C) Turkish Ambassador to Iraq Unal _Cevikoz told the Charge July 7 that he was called to Ankara (from his vacation in Istanbul) by Foreign Minister Gul to consult on the recent attacks on Arab diplomats in Baghdad. Gul was concerned by the recent attacks, but was still interested in visiting Iraq in the near future. _Cevikoz said that he counseled the minister to wait until after the August 15 deadline to complete the drafting of a new Iraqi constitution. ¶2. (C) _Cevikoz was optimistic about the constitutional drafting process. He recently met with Kurdistan Democratic Party chief Massoud Barzani who said he would look to the Transitional Administrative Law for ways to handle controversial issues in the constitution. Cevikoz, therefore, expected the Iraqis would paper over their differences on Kirkuk and meet the August 15 deadline. ¶3. (C) On plans to open a consulate in Mosul, _Cevikoz said he was urging Ankara to go slow despite having recently received the ITG's approval. He argued that the security situation needed to improve before opening there. ¶4. (U) Iraq REOs minimize considered. MCELDOWNEY