TURKEY REVIEWING REQUEST FOR ASSISTANCE TO

C O N F I D E N T I A L ANKARA 001259

SIPDIS

SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: DECL: 05/23/2017
TAGS: PREL PTER TU LE
SUBJECT: TURKEY REVIEWING REQUEST FOR ASSISTANCE TO
LEBANESE ARMED FORCES

REF: STATE 70449

Classified By: Political-Military Counselor Carl Siebentritt, reasons 1
.4 (b) and (d).


1. (C) Per reftel request, we approached MFA Middle East Head
of Department Sedat Onal on May 23 with the urgent request
for a donation of ammunition to the Lebanese Armed Forces
(LAF) and for continued public statements by the Turkish
government in support of the Lebanese government and the LAF
actions in response to Fatah al-Islam attacks. Onal agreed
to submit the list of required ammunition to MFA leadership
and to the Turkish General Staff (TGS). (Note: The Ankara
Office of Defense Cooperation provided the ammunition list
directly to TGS authorities on May 23.)


2. (C) Onal said that Turkey is closely watching the
situation in Lebanon. Foreign Minister Gul called Lebanese
PM Siniora on May 22 to express the government's concern that
the May 20 attack by FAI was a provocation "with dangerous
dimensions" that could be intended to provoke a confrontation
between Lebanon and the Palestinians, and offered Turkey's
readiness to provide any support or assistance needed. The
MFA subsequently issued a press release expressing its
concern about the attacks, calling for restraint and offering
assistance (informal MFA translation of text provided below).
We welcomed the Ministry's actions and urged additional
public statements in support of the Lebanese government and
for the establishment of a Special Tribunal under a Chapter
VII resolution.


3. (C) Regarding a Chapter VII resolution, Onal noted that
Turkey had not only supported the establishment of the Hariri
Commission but had contributed an investigator to serve on
it. Turkey, he said, supports the establishment of a Special
Tribunal on Lebanon but the government has not fully
evaluated the issue of whether it should be contained in a
Chapter VII resolution.


4. (U) BEGIN TEXT OF MFA PRESS RELEASE:

UNOFFICIAL TRANSLATION

We are deeply concerned with the fighting between the
Lebanese ARMY and Fatah al-Islam that has claimed the lives
of more than 50 people, 30 of whom were members of the
Lebanese Armed Forces.

During the delicate period which Lebanon and our region are
passing through, we wish that the clashes be ceased at the
earliest possible time and the current crisis be contained
without harming civilians in the Palestinian refugee camps in
Lebanon.

We strongly condemn the acts of terror that were perpetrated
in Beirut's Ahsrafiyeh and Verdun districts. We call upon
brotherly people of Lebanon to exercise self-restraint
vis-a-vis these provocative acts that aim to escalate the
tension in the country.

Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Mr. Abdullah Gul
called Mr. Fuad Siniora, Prime Minister of Lebanon, today,
expressed our concerns over the said events and pointed out
the importance of restoration of calm and the containment of
the crisis and Mr. Gul also expressed Turkey's solidarity
with the Lebanese government and people and her readiness to
provide any assistance and support that may be needed.

It will be recalled that Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign
Minister Mr. Abdullah Gul called Mr. Mahmoud Abbas, President
of the Palestinian National Authority and Mr. Ismael Haneye,
Prime Minister of Palestinian National Authority, last week
and expressed Turkey's readiness to do its best in bringing
an end to the shed of fraternal blood in Palestine, in
maintaining the unity and harmony of the Palestinian people,
as well as in assuring the continuation of the functions of
the National Unity Government.

END TEXT.

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

WILSON