ANKARA MEDIA REACTION REPORT

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 03 ANKARA 002550 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, OCTOBER 16, 2007 In Today's Papers Iraq Incursion Bill to Turkish Parliament for Approval All papers report Government Spokesman Cemil Cicek announced Monday that the Council of Ministers decided to submit the motion for a cross-border incursion into Iraq to the parliament for approval. Cicek stressed that the motion targeted only the PKK, and that it would cover a one-year period. "We hope that we will not have to use this motion," Cicek said, adding, "Unfortunately, countless meetings, memorandums, and agreements did not eliminate the PKK in northern Iraq. Our allies have failed to take enough measures to satisfy us so far. For instance, not one PKK terrorist was extradited to Turkey." Cicek also made clear that Turkey does not have its eye on any other country's resources. "We are not after oil; we want the Iraqi people and the world to know that we are not like the US, our only aim is to fight against terror." The motion will be debated at the Turkish Parliament on October 17. Mainstream Sabah says the motion prepared by the government authorizes operations against the PKK camps as well as the establishment of a buffer zone in northern Iraq. The paper expects Turkey to kick off operations by the end of November if Ankara and Baghdad fail to work out a formula for combating the terrorists. The operations will be shaped according to the results of the meeting of Iraqi neighbors in Istanbul on November 2-3 as well as the November 6 meeting of Prime Minister Erdogan with President Bush in the US, says the paper. Vatan, Cumhuriyet, Radikal and Milliyet quote State Department spokesman Tom Casey as saying the US was willing to work with Turkey to block the PKK attacks and called for restraint, warning unilateral action would not solve the problem. Papers report Kurdistan regional Prime Minister Nechirvan Barzani as telling Al-Jazeera that "The PKK is not a problem for Turkey alone, it also caused us problems in the past. In our fight against this party, we lost more than 3,500 lives. This problem requires a political solution. We have had good relations with Turkey for 16 years. The Iraqi Kurdistan government is serious about developing its relations with Turkey." Islamist-oriented Yeni Safak reports the Iraqi Defense Ministry Spokesman Muhammad al-Askari opposed a Turkish operation into Iraq, warning he cannot guarantee that the Iraqi military will remain silent in the face of such an attack. Meanwhile, television new programs reported this morning Iraqi Vice President Tarik al-Hashimi has arrived in Ankara on Tuesday on a "surprise visit" to meet Foreign Minister Ali Babacan and Prime Minister Erdogan. Hashimi is expected to explain the objections of the Iraqi administration to possible Turkish operations into northern Iraq. Armenian Genocide Resolution in the US All papers expect the bill on the mass killing of Armenians by Ottoman Turkish forces in 1915-16 to be forwarded to vote in the US House before November 16. Islamist-oriented Yeni Safak reports under the headline "She Passes the Ball to Bush" that Speaker Pelosi said in an interview with American network ABC that President Bush had not called her about the AGR, implying that "things might have changed if he did." Papers report that in a joint letter, Secretary Rice and Secretary Gates have asked Pelosi not to forward the resolution to House floor, stressing that adoption of the bill would "restrict our capacity for logistical support of our troops and also hurt reconciliation efforts." Mainstream Milliyet reports President Abdullah Gul will discuss the resolution with Foreign Minister Ali Babacan, Foreign Ministry Undersecretary Ertugrul Apakan and Turkish Ambassador in Washington Nabi Sensoy at a summit meeting in the presidential palace today. Commentary on Armenian Resolution/Northern Iraq Incursion Taha Akyol comments in the mainstream Milliyet: "Turkey is having problems with the Armenian lobby on one side, and PKK terrorism on ANKARA 00002550 002 OF 003 the other. The main issue here is: Turkey should coordinate these threats coming from two different fronts wisely, and not allow its fight on one front to damage the other front. Instead of challenging the world with hostile feelings, Turkey should become integrated with the world by using wise policies." Sahin Alpay writes in the Islamist-oriented Zaman: "Although, the resolution approved by the Foreign Affairs Committee is not binding, it will affect Turkey-US relations. Let's leave aside the argument whether the 1915 incidents were a genocide or not and establish diplomatic relations with Yerevan and open the border gates. Let's convince Baku of this approach." Intense Diplomatic Traffic in Turkey All papers report the Syrian Head of State Bashar Assad will pay an official visit to Turkey as the guest of President Gul to discuss Iraq, Israel and Palestine, and the upcoming expanded Iraq's neighbors' meeting in Istanbul. Assad will meet Parliament Speaker Koksal Toptan and will address the Turkish Parliament and also hold a join press conference with President Gul. Prime Minister Erdogan will host a dinner in his honor. On Wednesday Assad will go to Istanbul before he leaves Turkey on October 19. Foreign Minister Ali Babacan will visit Egypt and Lebanon from October 17-19. In Egypt Babacan will be received by President Hosni Mubarak and Prime Minister Ahmet Nazif. He will also meet Egyptian Foreign Minister Ahmed Abul Gheit and Arab League Secretary General Amr Moussa. In Lebanon Babacan will meet Prime Minister Fouad Siniora and Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri. Babacan will also visit the Turkish peacekeeping contingent in Lebanon. On October 21Babacan will pay a visit to Iran. Prime Minister Erdogan will pay an official visit to Britain on October 22-23 and meet with Prime Minister Gordon Brown. Cyanide Gold Mining Draws Reaction in Turkey Mainstream Sabah reports on its front page that 11 companies, some with international partners, have been licensed to mine gold with cyanide in Kaz (Ida) Mountains in northwestern Turkey. Companies will be exploring for gold in 37 spots in the region where hundreds of centuries-old pines and beech trees have already been bulldozed. They will be using about 400,000 ton of cyanide of which some 100,000 ton are expected to dissolve into the atmosphere. Local villagers said cyanide will damage the ecology, stressing they will resist the exploration work. Among the companies to dig for gold are Ariana, Canadian Teck Cominco's partner Fronteer, Eldorado Gold, and Rio Tinto. TV News: NTV Domestic News - The Turkish Parliament will hold a second round of voting Tuesday regarding the bill for constitutional reforms to be submitted to a referendum on October 21. - The prosecutor demands a sentence of life in prison for five suspects charged with the murder of three Christian missionaries in a bookstore in Malatya in eastern Turkey. - 47 people were killed and 252 others were injured in traffic accidents across Turkey yesterday. - More than 25,000 workers of Turk Telekom, Turkey's biggest fixed-line operator, have decided to go on strike after wage talks collapsed Monday. The strike is expected to hamper phone calls and internet services. International News ANKARA 00002550 003 OF 003 - Secretary Rice said Israel and Palestinian negotiators are involved in the most serious effort in "many, many years" to try to end the Mideast conflict. - Russian President Putin has dismissed reports for a plot to assassinate him in Tehran, said he'll go ahead with a planned trip to Iran. - Taliban commanders in Helmand province have sent a list of demands to the Karzai government as part of tentative back-channel talks to bring a peaceful end to the conflict. WILSON