"TRNC DAY" SPEECH: TALAT STICKS FOOT IN MOUTH WITH

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 NICOSIA 001944

SIPDIS

SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: DECL: 11/19/2016
TAGS: PGOV PREL EUN UNFICYP TU CY
SUBJECT: "TRNC DAY" SPEECH: TALAT STICKS FOOT IN MOUTH WITH
EU, QUARRELS WITH TURKISH MILITARY

REF: NICOSIA 1916

Classified By: Ambassador Ronald L. Schlicher, reasons 1.4 (b/d).


1. (C) SUMMARY. "TRNC President" Mehmet Ali Talat delivered
a petulant rhetorical broadside during November 15
commemorations of the 1983 Turkish Cypriot unilateral
declaration of independence (UDI). The "good" parts of
Talat's speech (throw-away references to the need for rule of
law and democracy, close relations with the EU, and Cyprus
reunification) were overshadowed by angry accusations against
Tassos Papadopoulos and -- more worryingly -- the provocative
suggestion that EU "discrimination" against Turkish Cypriots
resulted from a "Nazi" or "Crusader" mentality. Talat's
overwrought and ill-timed speech has soured the diplomatic
atmosphere on the island, drawn attention away from the
Turkish Cypriots' (comparatively) constructive attitude in
the recent UN process (reftel),and lent credibility to Greek
Cypriot claims that Talat is "just another Denktash." The
Turkish Cypriot press has largely ignored the language of the
speech itself and focused instead on Talat's argument with
local military commanders -- who reportedly changed the
November 15 order of ceremonies without Talat's permission,
inserting unwanted "separatist" speeches calling for the
"TRNC" to "live forever." The fact that Talat's November 15
performance is viewed in the north as a courageous
pro-settlement gesture in the face of military pressure shows
just how far Turkish Cypriot public opinion has drifted since
the unambiguously pro-EU days in 2004. END SUMMARY.

SHAKING HIS TINY FIST AT THE SKY
--------------


2. (C) "TRNC President" Talat delivered a provocative and
ill-timed speech during November 15 ceremonies marking the
23rd anniversary of the Turkish Cypriot UDI (full text
emailed to EUR/SE). With Turkish FM Gul (who also spoke
about not giving in to Greek Cypriot "blackmail") looking on,
Talat accused the Greek Cypriot leadership of trying to
swallow the Turkish Cypriots with a policy of "osmosis" and
personally attacked ROC President Tassos Papadopoulos as the
"lawyer, financial consultant, and psychological supporter of
Milosevic, who slaughtered his people of Bosnian and Albanian
origin in the middle of Europe and in the eyes of the EU."


3. (C) Turning his ire on the Europeans, Talat criticized
them for "embracing" Papadopoulos -- and (implicitly) of
condoning his dilatory behavior. He accused the European
Union of failing to deliver on its 2004 promise to end
Turkish Cypriot isolation. How should the Turkish Cypriots
respond to this? Talat asked. Perhaps Europe was
"approaching the Turkish Cypriots with discrimination,
cultural racism, and religious hostility that resembles
mentality of the Crusaders and Nazis."


4. (C) Talat made some attempt to counter-balance this
outrageous rhetoric, but it was half-hearted at best. He
expressed hope that the Europeans would fulfill the ideal
Turkish Cypriots aspired to -- that different cultures,
religions, and societies should be seen as "richness" and
accepted. He also stressed his continued desire for
reunification. Rather than an act of division, the UDI
should be viewed as a step toward solution, since the "TRNC"
would eventually evolve into "one of the principal pillars"
of a federal, united Cyprus. Talat went on to call for
continued internal reform, democracy, rule of law, and
"social justice."

SKUNK AT THE PICNIC
--------------


5. (C) Reaction to Talat's speech was swift and negative.
Hovering above the fray with visible satisfaction, ROC
spokesman Christodoulos Pashardis said he would not respond
to Talat's "insults and accusations." But the pro-government
press had a field day with Talat's remarks, accusing the
Turkish Cypriot leader of slinging mud, of racism, and of
"toeing" Turkey's hard line.


6. (C) More importantly, however, European and UN diplomats
are furious at Talat's remarks -- especially in light of
current Finnish-led efforts to broker a ports/Varosha deal
that could finally unblock Turkish Cypriot trade with the EU.
At a meeting the following day with P-5 poloffs, UN DCM
Cibor and our French and British counterparts agreed that the
Nazi reference, especially, was insulting and could only
damage the EU and UN negotiating atmosphere. Several EU
ambassadors today told Ambassador Schlicher that they were
sending the message to Talat that he should apologize for his
"Nazi" and "Crusader" references.


NICOSIA 00001944 002 OF 002



7. (C) Turkish Cypriot advisors close to Talat privately
acknowledge that the "president's" rhetoric has backfired.
One "minister" who is a childhood friend expressed
frustration that the "ill-considered" reference to Nazis and
Crusaders has drawn attention away from the fact that the
Turkish Cypriots have resumed "a more flexible" stance on the
UN track. The UN decision to submit its bridging proposal in
writing (reftel) was a "victory" for Talat that should have
put "Papadopoulos on the run." Instead -- for now, at least
-- the Greek Cypriots were off the hook.

ARE WE TALKING ABOUT THE SAME SPEECH?
--------------


8. (C) Talat's friend went on to say, however, that the
"president" was understandably frustrated with the failure of
his "constructive policies" to bring a solution any closer.
Turkish Cypriot voters were frustrated by the fact that
Papadopoulos seemed to suffer no penalty for his litany of
sins ("after all," he noted, "Tassos really did work for
Milosevic and he really did block a solution in 2004") -- and
were furious at the EU for "doing nothing" to help them.
Neither Turkish nor Turkish Cypriot politicians could get
away with taking a "soft line" toward the EU these days, he
claimed. The Nazi talk was "a little much," he admitted, but
"some angry words" were unavoidable.


9. (C) Perhaps not surprisingly, then, the Turkish Cypriot
press has virtually ignored the provocative content of
Talat's speech. Instead, Turkish Cypriots are abuzz with
controversy over reported tensions between Talat and the
Turkish military over the order of ceremonies at "TRNC Day."
Apparently unaware that the military protocol office had
inserted a speech by a serving officer, Talat sat in visibly
stunned silence when the uniformed man took to the podium and
delivered a Denktash-style address calling for the "TRNC" to
"live forever" -- and promising that the military would
"never abandon" the Turkish Cypriots. Talat pointedly
refused to clap for the speech, and summoned the local force
commander to his office the following day for what aides say
was a furious dressing-down. Noting that Talat has
previously clashed with the military over protocol and
ceremony (to say nothing of differences over who ultimately
wields real power in the north),Turkish Cypriot media have
spun the "TRNC Day" ceremony as a clash of wills between a
democratically-elected, pro-solution civilian leader and the
Denktashian old-school military establishment.

COMMENT
--------------


10. (C) Talat's remarks have done damage to his reputation
and to his ability to deliver for his constituents.
Bicommunal barbs, while harmful, are nothing new and
Papadopoulos has made his share of outrageous statements
(including a famous denial that any Turkish Cypriots were
killed in the intercommunal violence of 1963). But Talat's
attack on the EU is a new low and undercuts his most
important asset -- credibility as a serious pro-solution,
European-oriented interlocutor. Talat's remarks are unlikely
to derail UN efforts to kickstart a settlement process and
they do not change the fundamental dynamics of the Finnish
proposal. They do, however, poison the atmosphere of trust
that will be required for progress on either track. That
this has not dawned on most Turkish Cypriots is evidence of
how far public opinion in the north has shifted since 2004 --
and how difficult productive bicommunal dialogue has become.
END COMMENT.
SCHLICHER