TURKEY'S SUPREME MILITARY COUNCIL PUTS A STRONG

C O N F I D E N T I A L ANKARA 004894

SIPDIS

SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: DECL: 08/11/2031
TAGS: PGOV MARR TU
SUBJECT: TURKEY'S SUPREME MILITARY COUNCIL PUTS A STRONG
TEAM AT THE TOP

REF: ANKARA

Classified By: Ambassador Ross Wilson, reasons 1.4 (b) and (d).


1. (C) SUMMARY: The early announcement of Turkish Land Forces
Commander (TLFC) GEN Buyukanit's appointment as the next
Chief of the Turkish General Staff (ref a) was not the only
surprise to come out of the annual Supreme Military Council
(YAS) meeting. After just one year as Deputy Chief of the
General Staff (DCHOD),GEN Kosaner was reassigned as Jandarma
Commander, and Buyukanit's former TLFC Chief of Staff GEN
Saygun assumed the number two slot as DCHOD. The rank of
Special Forces Commander was elevated from a two-star to a
three-star general and the two-star incumbent was sidelined,
while his predecessor, Servet Yoruk, now a Lieutenant
General, was brought back in to take over. LTG Erdagi, who
successfully commanded ISAF for Turkey, was passed over for
promotion due to an ongoing trial on corruption charges.
Other changes were more predictable. GEN Basbug, with whom
we work well, moved from First Army Command to succeed
Buyukanit at the helm of TLFC. Naval Forces Commander
Karahanoglu and Air Force Commander Comert, who were assigned
in 2005, remained in place. Seventeen personnel were
dismissed for disciplinary reasons, in line with recent
years. END SUMMARY.

ASSEMBLING THE TEAM
--------------


2. (C) Speculation continues to surround the announcement of
TLFC GEN Buyukanit's selection as CHOD one day before the
start of the YAS. In addition to suggestions that the timing
was a peace offering from the AKP government to TGS in the
wake of recent civil-military tensions, press have suggested
that President Sezer pressed for the early announcement
following the circulation of a series of inflammatory and
anti-Semitic emails attempting to defame Buyukanit's
character in the weeks preceding the YAS meeting. According
to Dr. Huseyin Bagci (protect),a professor of international
and security relations at Middle East Technical University,
all of the YAS decisions were negotiated between TGS and the
government in July, at which time PM Erdogan purportedly also
agreed not to run for the Presidency in May 2007. Whatever
the circumstances, Buyukanit's selection has been generally
hailed as positive.


3. (C) When he assumes command on August 30, Buyukanit will
be joined by his former Land Forces Chief of Staff, GEN Ergin
Saygun. Like Buyukanit, Saygun has an open, gregarious
personality and a direct communication style. He shares
Buyukanit's frustration with the continued PKK violence and
has expressed to US military personnel his desire to
personally lead the charge against the terrorist organization
in southeastern Turkey. As TLFC COS, Saygun periodically met
with USG military and civilian officials to discuss security
cooperation and other issues.


4. (C) Saygun admitted to us his dissatisfaction with the
Undersecretariat for Defense Industries' (SSM) attack
helicopter program, in which no US firm participated, and
which left Turkey with the choice of a South African or
Italian helicopter. He openly admitted his preference for US
equipment and inquired about the parameters of the US Foreign
Military Sales program. We expect to continue this regular
exchange with him at TGS. Saygun will be succeeded by GEN
Atila Isik as Land Forces COS, a quieter version of Kosaner
who doesn't question his orders. Isik moves over from the
Defense Ministry, where he was Undersecretary, after
receiving his fourth star.

KOSANER CHANGES COURSE
--------------


5. (C) GEN Isik Kosaner, who received his fourth star in 2004
and his assignment as DCHOD in 2005, will move over to take
command of the Jandarma following the retirement of GEN
Turkeri. Kosaner has one more year in rank than GEN Saygun,
who succeeds him as DCHOD, but is his polar opposite in
personality. Reserved and rather stiff, Kosaner is described
as a traditional officer who keeps his counsel but does not
exude confidence. Several press accounts have suggested that
his assignment to the Jandarma may be intended to preserve
his upward mobility while allowing Buyukanit to reward his
TLFC deputy with a job that puts him in line for CHOD and to

keep at his side a DCHOD who shares both his style and his
priorities. The Jandarma command is not traditionally a path
to the top but Jandarma commanders have gone on to command
the Land Forces. As Jandarma commander, Kosaner will have a
seat at NSC meetings and, in 2008, if Basbug becomes CHOD as
expected, Kosaner will be the highest ranking Land Forces
officer. Following tradition, Kosaner could succeed Basbug
at TLFC chief, putting him in line to succeed Basbug as CHOD
in 2010.

BUYUKANIT'S SUCCESSOR LIKE-MINDED
--------------


6. (C) GEN Ilker Basbug's move from the First Army Command in
Istanbul to succeed Buyukanit at the helm of the TLFC follows
the traditional path to CHOD that leads from DCHOD to First
Army Command to the Land Forces Command and finally to TGS
Chief. Basbug is thought to sare Buyukanit's thinking on
the role of the military, the PKK, and the importance of the
US/TU relationship. Our relationship with him has been
generally positive. An avid reader of English-language
political analysis, Basbug exchanged books and discussed
authors with former Ambassador Edelman while DCHOD. He
welcomed US visitors and still maintains a close relationship
with USEUCOM Commander Gen Jones and with CJCS Gen Pace.
Officers who served under him, however, have called him
difficult, a stern taskmaster who accepts no counsel and
believes he has all the answers.


7. (C) Aegean Army Commander Remzi Tuncel will succeed Basbug
as First Army Commander for one year, when he reaches the
mandatory retirement age of 65. His departure will open up
the possibility for GEN Saygun or GEN Kosaner to take that
job and continue their upward climb. Second Army Commander
Sukru Sariisik will move to the Aegean Command behind Tuncel.
Speaking at a Change-of-Command ceremony, Sariisik
reportedly warned that Turkey had strayed from Ataturk's
principles and said that a "religious-based structure wants
to reverse the gains won by the principles and reforms of
Ataturk and take Turkey back to the totalitarian darkness of
the Middle Ages." He called separatist terrorism the
greatest threat to the country and suggested that Western
countries and certain Turkish groups were supporting the PKK
"in the name of democracy." Like Tuncel, Sariisik must
retire in 2007. LTG Hasan Igsiz, a Buyukanit protege, will
replace Sariisik. Igsiz, a US Army Staff College graduate,
will be an able field commander of the main Turkish Army
entity opposing the PKK in the southeast.

REIGNING IN THE SPECIAL FORCES
--------------


8. (C) Command of the almost 6,000-force strong Special
Forces was elevated from a two-star to a three-star general,
possibly in response to the May 2006 exposure of the
so-called Atabeyler Gang, a group of civilians and military
personnel accused of plotting to kill PM Erdogan and
overthrow the government, according to press reports. Among
those arrested in a raid of homes were several Special Forces
officers. This event added to a series of incidents that
portrayed the Special Forces as out of control. As the only
solid intel-collecting military entity, the role of the SF is
important. Following the change in command, outgoing
two-star General Hakki Ciyan, known more for his love of the
good life than his leadership abilities, will be succeeded by
LTG Servet Yoruk, who preceded Ciyan as SF commander as a
two-star. Yoruk is considered a strong, but fair, commander
who may tighten discipline among his troops. Under Yoruk,
the two existing SF brigades will be reorganized as units,
opening the way for further expansion.

GENERAL'S TRIAL A SIGN OF THE TIMES
--------------


9. (C) Third Corps Commander LTG Ethem Erdagi, who led the
successful Turkish command of ISAF VII, was eligible to
receive his fourth star but was passed over for promotion.
In a sign of changing times, this well-respected general is
on trial for alleged improprieties during the construction of
the Eighth Army Corps Headquarters in Elazig and has already
relinquished several personal properties as a result of the
investigation. Such public trials were unheard of until
recent years as Turkey implemented military reforms as part
of its EU accession process. Military officers charged with

a crime are not eligible for promotion. He will remain at
the command of Third Corps in Istanbul for the next year and,
depending on the outcome of the case against him, could be
considered for promotion in 2007.

OTHER NOTABLE CHANGES
--------------


10. (C) Other changes included a position swap between Land
Forces Training Doctrine Commander GEN Ismail Kocman and GEN
Orhan Yoney, Commander of the Third Army in Erzincan, in the
northeast. BG Levent Turkmen, who commanded the Tenth Tanker
Wing at Incirlik Air Base, will take over the Air Force
Academy command. A volatile personality made worse when he
drank, Turkmen was a difficult interlocutor. He will be
succeeded by BG Mehmet Yilmaz Erdogan who is currently
assigned as Chief of Logistics, Plans and Coordination for
the Air Force. Naval Forces Commander ADM Yener Karahanoglu
and Air Forces Commander Gen Faruk Comert, both appointed in
2005, will remain in place. In total, 32 flag officers were
promoted in rank and 47 colonels were promoted to general
officer.

DISMISSAL NUMBERS REMAIN STEADY
--------------


11. (SBU) Seventeen military personnel were dismissed from
TGS for disciplinary problems, immoral or unprofessional acts
and/or fundamentalist activities. This number is in line
with dismissals in recent years. In 2005, 11 individuals
were dismissed; 12 in 2004; 18 in 2003. The largest number
of dismissals in recent years was 46 in 2004, just months
before the Justice and Development Party (AKP) took over the
government.

Visit Ankara's Classified Web Site at
http://www.state.sgov.gov/p/eur/ankara/

WILSON