ANKARA MEDIA REACTION REPORT

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 03 ANKARA 000260

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
WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 7, 2007


In Today's Papers

Gul Continues Talks in the US
All papers report in his meeting with Vice President Dick Cheney,
Foreign Minister Abdullah Gul raised the topics of Armenian genocide
claims and the fight against the PKK. Sabah reports that using a
map, Gul showed Cheney Turkey's key location on energy and security
corridors, warning the VP that losing Turkey would be very costly
for the US. Turkey wanted concrete moves against the PKK "in the
coming days," Gul said, asking that the referendum planned in Kirkuk
be postponed.

Papers report Gul and Rice held a 30-minute meeting before the
Turkish and the US delegations came together at a working lunch.
Rice stressed at the lunch that the US administration had been
"mobilized" to block the Armenian genocide bill at the US Congress.
The US is aware of the significance of the PKK question, Rice said,
urging Turkey to be patient. Cumhuriyet reports Gul as saying, "I
could see that Americans were really embarrassed regarding the PKK
issue. I saw a very serious attitude on the US side, soon there
will be productive developments which will meet our expectations."


Papers say the leading Jewish groups Gul met with Monday were
discomfited with Turkey criticizing Israel. Gul asserted that
Turkey aimed to broker peace in the Middle East through talks such
as the ones with Hamas. He added Turkey has narrowed ties with
Hamas. The Jewish representatives promised Gul to do all to block
the Armenian genocide bill, according to papers.

Several papers report US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi denied Gul an
appointment, saying she was too busy this week, but showed up in a
women's meeting in the hotel where Gul stays. Papers say Pelosi
evading Gul was "a scandal."

Dink Murder Investigation, 'Deep State' Debates
Hurriyet, Milliyt, Sabah, Radikal, Cumhuriyet, Zaman, Yeni Safak
and others report Interior Minister Abdulkadir Aksu has approved a
request of his ministry inspectors probing the Hrant Dink
assassination for initiating investigation against Istanbul police
chief Celalettin Cerrah. Former Trabzon police chief Ramazan
Akyurek, currently police intelligence chief, was also interrogated
by inspectors. Milliyet and Radikal say although both the police
and gendarme were aware of Yasin Hayal's plans to kill Hrant Dink,
the Armenian writer was not warned. Cumhuriyet believes the Dink
assassination was conducted by "professionals."

Prime Minister Erdogan said his government will not tolerate those
violating laws "to protect national interests." Erdogan, speaking
at an AK Party gathering said that "negative nationalism" is the
most harmful thing to the country, the "greatest crime" that people
can commit against the state. On the controversial issue of the
"deep state," the PM said, "We can describe it as gangs inside a
state organization."

Opposition CHP leader Deniz Baykal said Erdogan had the top
responsibility in the Dink killing, calling on him to "keep his
hands out" the security cadres and resign. The far-right
Nationalist Action Party (MHP) leader Devlet Bahceli said Erdogan
was "pathologic," and that he spoke the same language as the PKK's
imprisoned leader Abdullah Ocalan. ANAP leader Erkan Mumcu accused
Erdogan of "paving the path" to a division among state institutions,
and of using religion as a political tool.

Meanwhile, even after his death, a lawsuit that had been filed
against Dink based on Article 301 continues. On Tuesday, Dink's
trial was put off to June because his death has not been reported to
the court yet, papers report.

On reform of Article 301, AKP deputy chairman Dengir Mir Mehmet

ANKARA 00000260 002 OF 003


Firat said the changes offered by NGOs to Turkish Penal Code Article
301 cannot help solve problems, but will lead to increases in
lawsuits filed through the controversial provision.

Editorial Commentary on Article 301, Iran
Kursat Bumin argues in the Islamist-opinion maker Yeni Safak: "The
argument that 'other countries have laws similar to Turkey's 301'
has become common rhetoric. Yet we should wonder to what extent
this argument reflects the reality? I find this claim to be
baseless, and the court ruling against Hrant Dink and the High Court
of Appeals ruling were equally baseless. Recently one expert,
during a television appearance, even listed the countries which
supposedly have laws on freedom of expression very similar to
Article 301of the Turkish Penal Code: Italy, Poland, Spain, France,
Germany, Sweden and Austria. It is easy to take the experts' word
for it, but I personally continued my research and examined the laws
that some claim are similar to our 301. Surprisingly enough, none
of the listed countries have anything which we can call similar to

301. There is only one similarity which comes from the Bulgarian
penal code, and Bulgaria is not even mentioned in that list.
Bulgarian Penal Code Article 88 talks about punishing insults
'against the pride of Bulgarian people.' Again when it comes to the
other seven countries, they don't have anything to support the claim
that 'others, not only Turkey, have laws like 301.' To cut a long
story short, why don't we see the Turkish translation of those laws
that supposedly look like our penal code? This is the only way to
end the argument and reach a consensus on the issue."

Kamuran Ozbir states in the nationalist Ortadogu: "Even though
Washington denied the interpretations of President Bush's speech on
January 10 as a sign of an upcoming strike against Iran, nowadays a
lot of officials are talking about the shift of the US focus from
Iraq to Iran. The new Secretary of Defense calls Iran the main
target for the American military presence in the Gulf. The US press
also started a new bombardment to persuade public opinion that Iran
is the new enemy. The Bush administration is now staging the same
tactic against Iran that was applied against Saddam Hussein -- when
everybody was persuaded that there was a link between Saddam and
al-Qaeda. For instance, the raid by American forces on an Iranian
diplomatic representation office was presented as 'Iranians planning
an attack against the US.' The Bush administration seems determined
to ool the American people once again. Both Israeland the
neo-cons in the administration are in favor of an attack against
Iran. It may seem odd that the Bush administration still plans to
attack another Muslim country despite the fact that it will only
deepen the already existing problems with Iraq and the region. But
for Washington the psychology is different. President Bush and his
administration believe that a triumph over Iran can make the Iraq
defeat forgotten."

President Sezer Partially Vetoes Oil Law
All papers report that President Sezer vetoed several provisions of
the Oil Law explaining that the given provisions necessitate further
negotiations. In the justification of the veto, President Sezer
said that with clauses paving the way for the state's transfer of
authority and rights to foreign companies, Turkey's national
security interests are disregarded.

Operations against the PKK in Europe
Sabah, Milliyet, Hurriyet, Radikal and others: Following France,
Belgium started an operation against the PKK yesterday. Sabah
reports that a high level PKK official Canan Kurtyilmaz was sent to
Paris and former DEP deputies Zubeyir Aydar and Remzi Kartal were
interrogated in Belgium.

Two Important Signatures for the F-35 Project
Milliyet, Aksam, Star, Zaman and others: Considered the biggest
procurement program in the Defense Industry, two agreements were
signed in Ankara yesterday for the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter
Project. In an agreement worth $3 billion with American firm

ANKARA 00000260 003 OF 003


Northrop Gumman, Turkish Aerospace Industry (TAI) will be producing
the centre part of the F-35s as the single source after the USA.
The second agreement was signed between the Turkish Defense Industry
and the main producer of F-35s, American firm Lockheed Martin.
Defense Minister Vecdi Gonul and US Ambassador Ross Wilson attended
the ceremony.


TV Highlights
NTV (6 A.M.)

Domestic News

-

- Prime Minister Erdogan met with visiting Pakistani President
Pervez Musharraf to discuss the steps to end fighting between Israel
and Palestine as well as in Iraq, Lebanon, and Palestine.

- Turkish ministers of energy, environment and farming said after
meeting yesterday they will submit a report on the effects of global
warming to the council of ministers meeting next week. The
ministers mainly discussed the possibility of a drought in Turkey
this year.

- The third Turkey-US Economic Partnership Commission (EPC) meetings
will be held in Ankara and Istanbul on February 8-9.

International News

- The Iraqi Kurdistan Democratic Party (IKDP) website says at the
end of the month multinational forces will transfer security
responsibility in northern Iraq to the Kurdish peshmerge.

- Nicosia said it will announce international bids for oil
exploration in eastern Mediterranean on February 15, defying Turkish
and Turkish Cyprus reactions.

- Greek Cypriots have asked India and China for an explanation on
how a planeload of energy-saving light bulbs was flown directly from
China via India into north Cyprus over the weekend.

- Tehran blamed the US for the abduction of an Iranian diplomat by
gunmen wearing Iraqi army uniforms in central Baghdad. A US
military spokesman denied any US or Iraqi involvement in the
incident.



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

WILSON