ANKARA MEDIA REACTION REPORT

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 04 ANKARA 003021

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DEPARTMENT FOR INR/R/MR, EUR/SE, EUR/PD, NEA/PD, DRL
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TAGS: OPRC KMDR TU
SUBJECT: ANKARA MEDIA REACTION REPORT
THURSDAY, MAY 25, 2006

In Today's Papers

Fire Breaks out in Istanbul's Main Airport
All papers: A large fire broke out in a cargo area of
Istanbul's main Ataturk Airport on Wednesday, injuring three
people. Papers say the blaze might have been caused by an
electrical short circuit, but the Kurdistan Freedom Hawks
(TAK),an offshoot of the PKK, claimed responsibility.
Authorities maintained there is no evidence to suggest
sabotage. Yeni Safak claims the fire could be linked to
alleged customs irregularities. Planes are landing and
taking off on schedule after a brief disruption yesterday.
Many companies experienced heavy material and financial
losses in the blaze, which has forced the authorities to
move Istanbul's commercial cargo operations to the small
airport at nearby Corlu.

Erdogan on Council of State Attack, Turkish Economy,
Elections
All papers: Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan said in a
televised speech to his AK Party group yesterday that last
week's attack on the Council of State was aimed at
disrupting stability and security in Turkey. 'The heinous
armed attack at the Council of State is an open act of
provocation. It is sad that some politicians have exploited
it and refuse to see the true face of the murderer. We can
defeat terrorism only by boosting freedoms and preserving
human rights,' Erdogan said. Erdogan rejected suggestions
that the AKP would take risks with the economy for POLITICAL
gain, saying there would be no irresponsible spending or tax
cuts as part of a drive to win votes in next year's
election. Concerns that the government might call an
election ahead of schedule have contributed to strains in
domestic financial markets, which have pushed the lira to
its lowest level against the USD in over two years. Erdogan
noted that market fluctuations are occurring around the
world, and that the AKP government is not in a hurry to
intervene. Erdogan stressed that there are no plans to call
early parliamentary elections, despite persistent
speculation about such a move.

Turkey, Greece to Set Up Emergency Hotline
Hurriyet, Milliyet, Sabah, Cumhuriyet, Zaman and others
report that following the collision of Greek and Turkish F-
16 fighter jets over the Aegean Sea during a dogfight
earlier this week, the two sides have decided to establish a
direct phone line between the Turkish airbase in Eskisehir
and the Greek base in Larissa for use in emergency
situations. The direct line will be inaugurated on June 10,
when Greek Foreign Minister Bakoyannis is scheduled to visit
Turkey. The Turkish Air Force Command announced yesterday
that the incident this week occurred when two Greek F-16
jetfighters approached a Turkish F-16 from the rear and
rammed into it. The Turks blamed the Greek side for what
they termed 'harassment.' Greek Prime Minister Costas
Karamanlis told the press that the collision and conditions
int eh Aegean would be taken into consideration in the
context of Turkey's application to join the EU.
'Yesterday's accident must be a signal to Turkey to abandon
tactics that do not tally with its European perspective,'
Karamanlis said.

BTC Oil to Reach Turkish Port in Late May
Star and Yeni Safak report that the Azerbaijani crude oil
that has been flushed into the Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan (BTC)
pipeline will reach the Mediterranean port of Ceyhan on May
27 to be distributed to world markets. The BTC will carry
an estimated 50 million ton of crude oil annually, resulting
in 300 million USD of annual income for Turkey. Heads of

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state and government from 16 countries are expected to
participate in the inauguration of BTC in Ceyhan on July 13.
Prime Minister Erdogan told Secretary Rice during her April
visit to Ankara that he would like to see the US President
and Secretary of State at the inauguration, according to
Yeni Safak.

Columnist Ibrahim Karagul wrote in the Islamist-oriented
Yeni Safak about BTC: "What is the connection between the
air attacks in Afghanistan that killed hundreds of civilians
and the Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan (BTC) pipeline? Why is NATO
getting ready for a ground operation in Afghanistan? Why is
the UK deploying more troops in Afghanistan? Why are NATO
and US forces bombing Afghan villages? BTC petrol will be
transported from the port of Ceyhan with by oil tankers
beginning on May 27. The official opening of the pipeline
is being organized for July 13. There will be a glorious
ceremony with the attendance of many heads of state. The US
will be represented at a high level. There is no doubt that
BTC is a very important step toward Turkey's goal of
becoming an energy hub. But the project itself and the
nature of the opening ceremony also show that BTC is also an
indicator of a frightening polarization. Problems in the
Middle East will spread to Central Asia in the near future.
The main reason for the US interest in the opening of the
BTC pipeline is that BTC is the only project the US had
started in the Caspian region since the 1990s that has
actually been completed. The US launched very expensive
military operations to facilitate some other projects, but
none of them was successful. Therefore, the US needs the
BTC pipeline more than Turkey does. Now that BTC is
completed, Washington is exerting great efforts for the
completion of a Turkmenistan-Afghanistan-Pakistan (TAP)
natural gas pipeline. The US is trying to lure India into
this project as well. And that is the main reason behind
the renewed fighting in Afghanistan. NATO is launching a
'mop-up' operation to secure the pipeline route. In short,
a dirty project is being carried out through the blood of
poor, innocent Afghans. BTC is a great opportunity for
Turkey, but is also an extension of frightening geopolitical
plans for Eurasia."

Police Detain Members of Fundamentalist Terror Group in
Konya
Hurriyet, Milliyet, Sabah, Radikal, Cumhuriyet, Zaman and
others: On Wednesday, anti-terror police captured 24
suspected members of the fundamentalist 'Islamist Great
Eastern Raiders' Front (IBDA-C)' terrorist organization in
the central Anatolian province of Konya. The suspects are
said to have run dormitories for single men and cafes and
restaurants in order to recruit members. Some of the
suspects were reportedly cashing post-dated checks, and some
were involved in kidnappings. Police seized three handguns
and organizational documents.

UN Investigates Women Suicides in Southeast Turkey
Hurriyet reports the United Nations has sent a
representative to Turkey to investigate the sharp rise in
suicides by women in the mainly Kurdish southeastern city of
Batman. There are suspicions that the increase in suicides
has been caused by heavy penalties brought by the new penal
code for honor killings, and that most of the suicide
victims have been forced to kill themselves by their
families. The number of suicides reported in Batman in the
last five months is higher than the number of suicides
committed throughout 2005.


Editorial Comment


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What does Russia Think about Turkey?
Hakan Aksay commented in the leftist-nationalist Cumhuriyet
(5/25): "An effort to improve Turkish-Russian RELATIONS has
been a marked feature of Putin's rule. Tension between
these two countries might benefit others, but would
inevitably damage both countries. Turkey's geo-strategic
position is based on energy resources. Both Turkey and
Russia have joint interests in the Black-Sea. Russian
Gazprom wants to do business in Turkey. If Russia offers
Turkey an energy partnership in the near future, that would
not be a surprise. It is noticeable that Russia is also
showering Turkey with proposals ranging from the sale of
military helicopters to the construction of nuclear power
plants. The recent improvement in Russia-Turkey RELATIONS
disturbs the US. The US is pressuring Turkey not to have
trade cooperation with Russia. Russian Foreign Minister
Lavrov will be coming to Turkey on May 31. President
Sezer's visit to Russia will follow soon after that.
Turkish-Russian RELATIONS could accelerate quickly if US
pressure can be avoided."


TV Highlights
NTV, 8.00 a.m.

Domestic News

- Israeli Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni will travel to Ankara
for a three-day official visit on Sunday to meet with Prime
Minister Erdogan and Foreign Minister Gul.

- Turkey's social security reform bill, which had earlier
been vetoed by President Sezer, will be discussed by the
parliament next week.

International News

- British daily The Independent said Ankara's EU bid has
been jeopardized by the killing of a top judge by an
Islamist lawyer last week. The angry popular response to
the murder motivated by disagreements over the right to wear
the headscarf has had the effect of forcing people in Turkey
to take sides.

- President Ahmadinejad said the US will fail in its effort
to provoke ethnic clashes in Iran. The statement came a day
after Iran closed a state-owned newspaper and detained its
chief editor for publishing an insulting cartoon that
sparked riots by ethnic Azeris in Tabriz in northwestern
Iran.

- UNSYG Annan plans to send his special envoy, Michael
Moller, to Cyprus, Turkey and Greece to test the ground for
a new UN peace initiative on Cyprus.

- Nabil Hodhod, a Gaza security chief loyal to President
Abbas, was killed in a car bomb attack yesterday.

Economy News

- Turkey's telecommunications board and Vodafone Group Plc
have signed a concession contract to completr the sale of
Telsim, Turkey's second-biggest mobile operator. Earlier
this month, Turkey's top administrative court approved
Vodafone's 4.55 billion USD takeover of Telsim.


Visit Ankara's Classified Web Site at

http://www.state.sgov.gov/p/eur/ankara/

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WILSON