ANKARA MEDIA REACTION REPORT

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 04 ANKARA 000027 SIPDIS 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, JANUARY 3, 2006 THIS REPORT PRESENTS THE TURKISH PRESS SUMMARY UNDER THREE THEMES: HEADLINES BRIEFING EDITORIAL OPINION -------------- -- HEADLINES MASS APPEAL Turkish Ambassador In Iraq Escapes Assassination - Sabah US Allegedly Bribes Iraqi Clergymen - Hurriyet Pentagon Hires Imams in Iraq - Sabah UN to Question Assad on Hariri Killing - Hurriyet Haddam Preparing to Replace Assad - Milliyet Haddam: Assad Had Threatened Hariri - Tercuman 1/1 Sharon Wants to Annex West Bank - Hurriyet Bush Defends Domestic Wiretapping - Milliyet 84 Captives on Hunger Strike at Gitmo - Aksam 1/1 OPINION MAKERS Ankara Denies US Asked for Bases to Strike Iran - Radikal US Requests Airbase from Azerbaijan - Cumhuriyet Pentagon Allocates Funds for Iraqi Clergy - Cumhuriyet Shiites, Kurds Agree to Form Coalition in Iraq - Zaman 1/1 US Tightens Iran `Noose' - Cumhuriyet Straw to Visit Turkey in January - Cumhuriyet Abbas Implies Election Delay in Palestine - Zaman HAMAS Ends Cease-Fire with Israel - Cumhuriyet 1/2 Ahmadinejad: Zionism Amounts to `New Fascism' - Yeni Safak Iranian Kurds Establish `Kurdistan United Front' - Radikal 100 Sudanese Killed by Police in Cairo - Yeni Safak BRIEFING Ankara Rejects Claims US Wants Turkish Bases to Strike Iran: The Turkish Foreign Ministry (MFA) said on Monday that newspaper reports claiming that the United States has asked Ankara for permission to use military bases in Turkey for possible attacks against Iran are false. `This speculation has no connection with reality. Turkey believes the problems in its region should be resolved through dialogue, and believes that our region does not need any new problems,' the MFA said in a statement. Government Spokesman Cemil Cicek lashed out at the press for publishing `wrong, unfounded and totally baseless reports' that `has made Turkey the target of terrorist organizations.' `Our diplomats in foreign missions, who devotedly work to fulfill their duties, pay the cost of such speculation. We have tried to explain many times that these press reports are not valid,' Cicek said. Some Turkish newspapers have repeated stories in foreign newspapers claiming that a series of high- profile US visitors to Ankara in recent months have been preparing the ground for US strikes from Turkey against Iran's nuclear facilities. Turkeys' Ambassador Survives Attack in Baghdad: Turkey's Ambassador to Iraq, Unal Cevikoz, survived an attack on his convoy by some 15 assailants in Baghdad on Monday. The gunmen damaged some of the vehicles, but no injuries were reported. The Turkish Foreign Ministry (MFA) strongly denounced the attack. Government spokesman Cemil Cicek said that Turkey had become the target of terrorist attacks due to false press reports that the US had asked Turkey for cooperation in a possible strike against Iran. General Ozkok Calls for Changes to Turkish Anti-Terror Law: ANKARA 00000027 002 OF 004 The head of the Turkish armed forces, General Hilmi Ozkok, called for legal changes in the anti-terrorism law, complaining that recent changes to the law have made the fight against terrorist more difficult. In an article published in a magazine issued by retired military officers, Ozkok complained that the new regulations terrorists broader room to maneuver. He added that anti-terror regulations in Turkey should be in line with similar provisions in EU countries. Cicek said after a cabinet meeting yesterday that changes to the anti-terror bill were possible. Turkey, Israel, Palestine to Sign Agreement on Erez Industrial Zone: On Wednesday, Foreign Minister Abdullah Gul will sign an agreement with Israeli and Palestinian officials to reactivate the Erez industrial zone in the northern Gaza Strip. Talks between Turkey and Israel on the security of the industrial zone are continuing. The Turkish Union of Chambers (TOBB) will handle the management of the zone, a project that will provide employment opportunities for 10,000 Palestinians. Goods manufactured in Erez factories will be able to enter the EU, the US, and Gulf countries duty-free. Gul on Turkey-US, EU, Pamuk Trial: The conservative/opinion maker "Zaman" carried an exclusive interview with Foreign Minister Abdullah Gul on Sunday. Following are excerpts from the interview: `Ties between Turkey and the United States are based on solid ground. There is strong cooperation between the two countries. There can be different opinions and tendencies even among family members, and Turkey and the US have had such differences in the past. We share a similar vision with the US in terms of establishing a stable authority in Iraq. It is our primary concern to see Iraq take steps towards democratization and stability. We want to maintain these relations that date back 50 years.' `The visits by FBI and CIA officials were routine. It is also routine for Turkish intelligence officials to meet with intelligence officials from other countries. The visit paid by US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice to Turkey indicates that the two countries have strong ties. However, this has nothing to do with such countries as Iran and Syria. Such issues may be a source of speculation for the foreign media. I made similar explanations at the Cairo meeting of the Arab League as well.' `The AKP government is conscious of the EU process. Many claim that there is a decade ahead of Turkey before it becomes a full member of the EU. There will be obstacles and ups and downs in the course of time. Each member country went through this same process. Turkey is doing a good job and is covering ground rapidly. The process has not been suspended or slowed down. All our institutions are carrying out this work with great enthusiasm.' `There is one EU member that we do not recognize. We will now see how much they will exploit this issue. The important thing here is the extension of the Customs Union agreement in a way that will include all EU member countries. We will discuss the supplementary protocol when it comes before the Turkish parliament. We have made the necessary plans regarding this issue.' `Only people who are anti-Turkish and Orhan Pamuk himself have benefited from the recent debates (on the issue of the Armenian `genocide.') Pamuk's ratings have increased. I believe these debates were intentional.' ANKARA 00000027 003 OF 004 Kurdish Mayors Ask Denmark Not to Ban Roj-TV: A prosecutor in Turkey's mainly Kurdish southeastern province of Diyarbakyr launched an investigation of 56 mayors from the Kurdish party DTP for sending a letter to Danish Prime Minister Andres Fogh Rasmussen in which the mayors asked the PM to resist pressure from Ankara to prohibit Roj-TV broadcasts. The mayors claimed in the letter that Roj-TV is playing an important role in the struggle for democratization and human rights in Turkey, adding that closing Roj-TV would make it more difficult for Turkey's Kurds to gain access to Kurdish language broadcasting. Turkish papers note that four other Kurdish channels are being kept `on standby' to continue broadcasting if Denmark bans Roj-TV. The owner of Roj-TV, the Mesopotamia Company, has obtained authorization from Danish authorities for the four new channels. Matsakis Released in Turkish Cyprus: Marios Matsakis, a Greek Cypriot lawmaker in the European Parliament, has been released from custody in Turkish Cyprus. Matsakis was arrested when he tried to enter the `TRNC' last weekend for violating a high-security military area in the north and stealing a Turkish flag early in December. He was brought before a military court today. The presiding judge decded to suspend the case against him until his term as a member of the European Parliament ends, and ordered his release. Russia-Ukraine Natural Gas Dispute: Dailies report on Tuesday that the Russia-Ukraine gas dispute has drawn attention to Turkey's shortage of gas reserves, as there are no storage facilities in Turkey. Energy experts say Istanbul faces the risk of being left without natural gas as a result of the row between Russia and Ukraine. Government officials insist, however, that there is no problem at the moment. Papers report that Russia and Ukraine have assured the Turkish Foreign Ministry that gas to Turkey will not be cut. Ankara is largely dependent on Russia for its natural gas supply, and any crisis could leave Turkey without power. Turkey gets 65 percent of its gas from Russia. Turkey among Largest Exporters around the World: Turkish exports rose in 2005 to a record level of 73.4 billion USD, pro-government "Yeni Safak" reports on its front page. The record year makes Turkey the world's 22nd largest exporting country. EDITORIAL OPINION: "What is happening?" Gungor Mengi commented in the mass appeal "Vatan" (1/3): "At last, sources from the Prime Minister's office denied that the US requested the use of Turkish bases as a staging ground for attacks on Iran, as reported by the German and Israel press. It is not likely that the US will launch an operation against Iran just to end its nuclear program. Even if they did want to, the US would not need Turkey for such actions, because there are many places closer to Iran that the US can use with less risk. Any pressure on Turkey for the use of the bases will only increase anti-American feelings. Already many surveys show that Turkish people consider the US as one of the biggest threats to Turkey's security. It is definite that the US did not request bases from Turkey. But there is one question that we need to know the answer in order to have peace in mind -- why were the recent CIA and FBI visits announced so loudly while prior visits have always been kept very quiet?" ANKARA 00000027 004 OF 004 "Why was the Turkish Ambassador to Baghdad attacked?" Mustafa Balbay wrote in the leftist-nationalist "Cumhuriyet" (1/3): "Luckily no one was injured or killed in the armed attack against the Turkish Ambassador to Baghdad. Lately, Turkey's Iraq policy has been rather noticeably leaning toward the Sunnis. The Turkish Foreign Ministry played the role of mediator when the US Ambassador to Baghdad Zalmay Khalilzad and Sunni officials meet together. After that meeting it was announced that Sunnis wouldn't boycott the elections. Turkey undertook an important responsibility in the name of the US, and the elections in Iraq were presented as democratic. Turkey continued its relationship with the Sunnis even after this meeting in order to solidify Iraq's territorial integrity. Turkish Ambassador Cevikoz was attacked during his return from a visit to Sunni Ulema Union. This organization is very friendly with the `Hivar Front,' the main political resistance in Iraq. The US' new Iraq policy is `if you cannot administrate it just eliminate it'. The US doesn't want Turkey to have a close relationship with the Sunnis. Yesterday, the MFA in an official statement said that `such attacks would not stop Turkey's support for Iraq which protects its democracy, political unity and territorial integrity'. This is a very interesting announcement; an attack launched against the Turkish Ambassador while Turkey supports Iraq's territorial integrity! Who could be the responsible of this attack? Of course, those who do not want a united Iraq. We are not after a conspiracy theory, but this attack screams that there is a plot." WILSON