Identifier
Created
Classification
Origin
07ANKARA296
2007-02-12 13:30:00
UNCLASSIFIED
Embassy Ankara
how-toVZCZCXRO4854 OO RUEHDA DE RUEHAK #0296/01 0431330 ZNR UUUUU ZZH O 121330Z FEB 07 FM AMEMBASSY ANKARA TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC IMMEDIATE 0920 RUEKJCS/CJCS WASHDC IMMEDIATE RUEKJCS/SECDEF WASHDC IMMEDIATE RUEKJCS/OSD WASHDC//PA RUEUITH/ODC ANKARA TU INFO RUEHTH/AMEMBASSY ATHENS 7798 RUEHIT/AMCONSUL ISTANBUL 2102 RUEHDA/AMCONSUL ADANA 1642 RUEHBS/AMEMBASSY BRUSSELS 5733 RUEHBS/USEU BRUSSELS RUEHNO/USMISSION USNATO 5470 RUCNDT/USMISSION USUN NEW YORK 2106 RUEUITH/DET 1 39LG ANKARA TU RHMFIUU/USDOCO 6ATAF IZMIR TU RHMFIUU/39OSS INCIRLIK AB TU RHMFIUU/AFOSI DET 523 IZMIR TU RHMFIUU/39ABG INCIRLIK AB TU RHMFIUU/AFOSI DET 522 INCIRLIK AB TU RUEUITH/AFLO ANKARA TU
UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 03 ANKARA 000296
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
MONDAY, FEBRUARY 12, 2007
In Today's Papers
Aftermath of Foreign Minister Gul's US Visit
Foreign Minister Abdullah Gul, in an evaluation of his US trip, told
the Islamist-oriented Yeni Safak, "I have not only explained to
Cheney and Rice the depth of the US-Turkey relationship, but drew an
overall perspective including Afghanistan, Iraq, the Balkans,
Kosovo, energy and oil issues." In talks with the US Congressmen,
Gul said he reminded them that the Armenian genocide issue is not a
national question for the Americans. He believes the Armenian
resolution has not reached an "irreversible" point, and rejects
stories of him "threatening" Americans: "I haven't issued tough
messages, but merely gave reasonable messages without trying to
blackmail them." The paper says two Congressmen `ck
support for the ge The agreement gives Ankara the
right to intervene in the Kirkuk, Suleimaniya, Erbil, Tel Afar, and
Dohuk -- an area of 90,000 square kilometers -- in case the Turkmen
in the region are threatened. Turkey has discussed the issue with
Britain, and Foreign Minister Abdullah Gul raised it during meetings
in the US, says Cumhuriyet.
Editorial Commentary on US Presidential Race, Armenian Resolution
Zafer Atay comments on the upcoming US Presidential race in the
economic-political daily Dunya: "Democrats have some prominent
figures in the race. Senator Hillary Clinton represents a big
opportunity for the Democrat Party. Senator of Illinois Barack
Obama seems to be another emerging name for some of the Democrats.
The Republicans hope to gain election momentum with former mayor
Giuliani. Senator McCain is another leading name for Republican
Party and he is known to be more moderate than Bush. As far as the
media is concerned, there are two stars of this race; namely Mrs.
Clinton and Barack Obama. The former has no problem collecting
money while the latter has very limited financial support for the
election race. Moreover, Obama's chances are about to diminish
since a series of attempts has already begun to label him as somehow
linked to Bin Laden. He is repeatedly saying that he is not a
Muslim, but Islamophobia in the US is significant enough to destroy
a political career. There will certainly be more allegations and
speculation circulating as the US gets closer to the election date.
In the end, the main question is whether the US is ready for a woman
president or a black president. I think the answer is not quite."
Kamuran Ozbir argues in the nationalist Ortadogu that passage of an
Armenian genocide resolution by the US Congress will damage
US-Turkey relations: "The Armenian genocide resolution issue in the
US House of Representatives is an indication of another crisis in
the already fragile relationship between Turkey and the US. Given
the Democratic majority in the Congress as well as the current
political weakness of the Bush administration, it will be very hard
to block the process. During the visit of FM Gul to Washington, the
administration promised to intervene. The Washington administration
will certainly keep its word, because a resolution as such does not
serve US strategic interests. Yet the chance for success seems very
unlikely. `he resolution passes in
like a binding law in All to Excavation of Alleged Arenian Mass Grave
Hurriyet reports the Turkish History Institution has invited
officials from Sweden and other countries including Armenia to
Turkey to join the excavation of a mass grave, allegedly belonging
to Armenians killed by Turks, found in the southeastern province of
Mardin. Swedish Professor David Gaunt, a "genocide specialist" at
Sodertorns University College, has claimed that the mass grave was
evidence of the mass killing of Armenians in 1915. The head of the
Turkish History Institution Professor Yusuf Halacoglu said they were
ready to apologize if the excavation results show that the mass
grave belongs to Armenians or Syriacs, and that "We expect an
apology if the excavations produce contrary results." Professor
Gaunt has accepted the invitation. Turkey plans to start the
excavations in late March.
TV News:
(NTV, 7.00 A.M.)
Domestic News
- Prime Minister Erdogan spent the weekend in his hometown, the
Black Sea city of Rize, inaugurating various installations.
- Four children in the southeastern province of Batman suspected of
having the deadly avian influenza virus have tested negative.
- Australian Foreign Minister Alexander Downer visits Ankara as the
official guest of his Turkish counterpart Abdullah Gul. Downer will
meet with Gul, President Sezer and Parliament Speaker Bulent Arinc.
- A Turkish Cyprus parliamentary delegation will attend the
Organization of the Islamic Conference (OIC) inter-parliamentary
union meeting in Malaysia on February 13-16.
International News
- Ankara is expected to announce a four-stage unilateral plan for
the harmonization of Turkish laws with EU regulations.
- Iraq's foreign minister Hoshyar Zebari said Kirkuk is not a
Turkish city, adding that the residents of Kirkuk could solve their
ANKARA 00000296 002 OF 003
of his American counterpart General Peter Pace. General Buyukanit
is expected to meet with General Schoomaker, Vice President Cheney,
Undersecretary of Defense Eric Edelman, as well as General Pace.
Sabah quoted General Buyukanit, prior to his departure saying that
"if the Armenian resolution passes in the Congress the Turkey-US
military relationship will be damaged." Milliyet reports that, on
the plane on the way to the US, General Buyukanit complained about
the fact that Turkey "could not explain its stance on Armenian
Genocide and Cyprus issues to its interlocutors adding that "as a
result, we come to the position of defending ourselves as if we are
the faulty ones."
Parliament Speaker Bulent Arinc Comments on the Presidential
Elections
All papers report that Parliament Speaker Arinc revealed over the
weekend that the ruling AK Party would choose a presidential
candidate from the parliament. In an exclusive interview with
Channel 7 on Sunday, Arinc was quoted as saying "no deputy of the
ruling AK Party, which has the majority in Parliament, is
considering a candidate from outside." Asked whether their
candidate will be selected byo Excavation of Alleged Arenian Mass Grave
Hurriyet reports the Turkish History Institution has invited
officials from Sweden and other countries including Armenia to
Turkey to join the excavation of a mass grave, allegedly belonging
to Armenians killed by Turks, found in the southeastern province of
Mardin. Swedish Professor David Gaunt, a "genocide specialist" at
Sodertorns University College, has claimed that the mass grave was
evidence of the mass killing of Armenians in 1915. The head of the
Turkish History Institution Professor Yusuf Halacoglu said they were
ready to apologize if the excavation results show that the mass
grave belongs to Armenians or Syriacs, and that "We expect an
apology if the excavations produce contrary results." Professor
Gaunt has accepted the invitation. Turkey plans to start the
excavations in late March.
TV News:
(NTV, 7.00 A.M.)
Domestic News
- Prime Minister Erdogan spent the weekend in his hometown, the
Black Sea city of Rize, inaugurating various installations.
- Four children in the southeastern province of Batman suspected of
having the deadly avian influenza virus have tested negative.
- Australian Foreign Minister Alexander Downer visits Ankara as the
official guest of his Turkish counterpart Abdullah Gul. Downer will
meet with Gul, President Sezer and Parliament Speaker Bulent Arinc.
- A Turkish Cyprus parliamentary delegation will attend the
Organization of the Islamic Conference (OIC) inter-parliamentary
union meeting in Malaysia on February 13-16.
International News
- Ankara is expected to announce a four-stage unilateral plan for
the harmonization of Turkish laws with EU regulations.
- Iraq's foreign minister Hoshyar Zebari said Kirkuk is not a
Turkish city, adding that the residents of Kirkuk could solve their
ANKARA 00000296 003 OF 003
own problems through the Iraqi constitution.
- Greek Cypriot leader Papadopoulos said his country will not give
up its sovereign rights regarding oil exploration in the eastern
Mediterranean.
- Greek Prime Minister Kostas Karamanlis has invited Greek Cypriot
leader Papadopoulos to Athens to urge him to give up plans for oil
exploration that have become source of tensions in eastern
Mediterranean.
- On February 15, President Abbas is to formally authorize Prime
Minister Haniyeh to form a new unity government in Palestine.
http://www.state.sgov.gov/p/eur/ankara/
WILSON
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
MONDAY, FEBRUARY 12, 2007
In Today's Papers
Aftermath of Foreign Minister Gul's US Visit
Foreign Minister Abdullah Gul, in an evaluation of his US trip, told
the Islamist-oriented Yeni Safak, "I have not only explained to
Cheney and Rice the depth of the US-Turkey relationship, but drew an
overall perspective including Afghanistan, Iraq, the Balkans,
Kosovo, energy and oil issues." In talks with the US Congressmen,
Gul said he reminded them that the Armenian genocide issue is not a
national question for the Americans. He believes the Armenian
resolution has not reached an "irreversible" point, and rejects
stories of him "threatening" Americans: "I haven't issued tough
messages, but merely gave reasonable messages without trying to
blackmail them." The paper says two Congressmen `ck
support for the ge The agreement gives Ankara the
right to intervene in the Kirkuk, Suleimaniya, Erbil, Tel Afar, and
Dohuk -- an area of 90,000 square kilometers -- in case the Turkmen
in the region are threatened. Turkey has discussed the issue with
Britain, and Foreign Minister Abdullah Gul raised it during meetings
in the US, says Cumhuriyet.
Editorial Commentary on US Presidential Race, Armenian Resolution
Zafer Atay comments on the upcoming US Presidential race in the
economic-political daily Dunya: "Democrats have some prominent
figures in the race. Senator Hillary Clinton represents a big
opportunity for the Democrat Party. Senator of Illinois Barack
Obama seems to be another emerging name for some of the Democrats.
The Republicans hope to gain election momentum with former mayor
Giuliani. Senator McCain is another leading name for Republican
Party and he is known to be more moderate than Bush. As far as the
media is concerned, there are two stars of this race; namely Mrs.
Clinton and Barack Obama. The former has no problem collecting
money while the latter has very limited financial support for the
election race. Moreover, Obama's chances are about to diminish
since a series of attempts has already begun to label him as somehow
linked to Bin Laden. He is repeatedly saying that he is not a
Muslim, but Islamophobia in the US is significant enough to destroy
a political career. There will certainly be more allegations and
speculation circulating as the US gets closer to the election date.
In the end, the main question is whether the US is ready for a woman
president or a black president. I think the answer is not quite."
Kamuran Ozbir argues in the nationalist Ortadogu that passage of an
Armenian genocide resolution by the US Congress will damage
US-Turkey relations: "The Armenian genocide resolution issue in the
US House of Representatives is an indication of another crisis in
the already fragile relationship between Turkey and the US. Given
the Democratic majority in the Congress as well as the current
political weakness of the Bush administration, it will be very hard
to block the process. During the visit of FM Gul to Washington, the
administration promised to intervene. The Washington administration
will certainly keep its word, because a resolution as such does not
serve US strategic interests. Yet the chance for success seems very
unlikely. `he resolution passes in
like a binding law in All to Excavation of Alleged Arenian Mass Grave
Hurriyet reports the Turkish History Institution has invited
officials from Sweden and other countries including Armenia to
Turkey to join the excavation of a mass grave, allegedly belonging
to Armenians killed by Turks, found in the southeastern province of
Mardin. Swedish Professor David Gaunt, a "genocide specialist" at
Sodertorns University College, has claimed that the mass grave was
evidence of the mass killing of Armenians in 1915. The head of the
Turkish History Institution Professor Yusuf Halacoglu said they were
ready to apologize if the excavation results show that the mass
grave belongs to Armenians or Syriacs, and that "We expect an
apology if the excavations produce contrary results." Professor
Gaunt has accepted the invitation. Turkey plans to start the
excavations in late March.
TV News:
(NTV, 7.00 A.M.)
Domestic News
- Prime Minister Erdogan spent the weekend in his hometown, the
Black Sea city of Rize, inaugurating various installations.
- Four children in the southeastern province of Batman suspected of
having the deadly avian influenza virus have tested negative.
- Australian Foreign Minister Alexander Downer visits Ankara as the
official guest of his Turkish counterpart Abdullah Gul. Downer will
meet with Gul, President Sezer and Parliament Speaker Bulent Arinc.
- A Turkish Cyprus parliamentary delegation will attend the
Organization of the Islamic Conference (OIC) inter-parliamentary
union meeting in Malaysia on February 13-16.
International News
- Ankara is expected to announce a four-stage unilateral plan for
the harmonization of Turkish laws with EU regulations.
- Iraq's foreign minister Hoshyar Zebari said Kirkuk is not a
Turkish city, adding that the residents of Kirkuk could solve their
ANKARA 00000296 002 OF 003
of his American counterpart General Peter Pace. General Buyukanit
is expected to meet with General Schoomaker, Vice President Cheney,
Undersecretary of Defense Eric Edelman, as well as General Pace.
Sabah quoted General Buyukanit, prior to his departure saying that
"if the Armenian resolution passes in the Congress the Turkey-US
military relationship will be damaged." Milliyet reports that, on
the plane on the way to the US, General Buyukanit complained about
the fact that Turkey "could not explain its stance on Armenian
Genocide and Cyprus issues to its interlocutors adding that "as a
result, we come to the position of defending ourselves as if we are
the faulty ones."
Parliament Speaker Bulent Arinc Comments on the Presidential
Elections
All papers report that Parliament Speaker Arinc revealed over the
weekend that the ruling AK Party would choose a presidential
candidate from the parliament. In an exclusive interview with
Channel 7 on Sunday, Arinc was quoted as saying "no deputy of the
ruling AK Party, which has the majority in Parliament, is
considering a candidate from outside." Asked whether their
candidate will be selected byo Excavation of Alleged Arenian Mass Grave
Hurriyet reports the Turkish History Institution has invited
officials from Sweden and other countries including Armenia to
Turkey to join the excavation of a mass grave, allegedly belonging
to Armenians killed by Turks, found in the southeastern province of
Mardin. Swedish Professor David Gaunt, a "genocide specialist" at
Sodertorns University College, has claimed that the mass grave was
evidence of the mass killing of Armenians in 1915. The head of the
Turkish History Institution Professor Yusuf Halacoglu said they were
ready to apologize if the excavation results show that the mass
grave belongs to Armenians or Syriacs, and that "We expect an
apology if the excavations produce contrary results." Professor
Gaunt has accepted the invitation. Turkey plans to start the
excavations in late March.
TV News:
(NTV, 7.00 A.M.)
Domestic News
- Prime Minister Erdogan spent the weekend in his hometown, the
Black Sea city of Rize, inaugurating various installations.
- Four children in the southeastern province of Batman suspected of
having the deadly avian influenza virus have tested negative.
- Australian Foreign Minister Alexander Downer visits Ankara as the
official guest of his Turkish counterpart Abdullah Gul. Downer will
meet with Gul, President Sezer and Parliament Speaker Bulent Arinc.
- A Turkish Cyprus parliamentary delegation will attend the
Organization of the Islamic Conference (OIC) inter-parliamentary
union meeting in Malaysia on February 13-16.
International News
- Ankara is expected to announce a four-stage unilateral plan for
the harmonization of Turkish laws with EU regulations.
- Iraq's foreign minister Hoshyar Zebari said Kirkuk is not a
Turkish city, adding that the residents of Kirkuk could solve their
ANKARA 00000296 003 OF 003
own problems through the Iraqi constitution.
- Greek Cypriot leader Papadopoulos said his country will not give
up its sovereign rights regarding oil exploration in the eastern
Mediterranean.
- Greek Prime Minister Kostas Karamanlis has invited Greek Cypriot
leader Papadopoulos to Athens to urge him to give up plans for oil
exploration that have become source of tensions in eastern
Mediterranean.
- On February 15, President Abbas is to formally authorize Prime
Minister Haniyeh to form a new unity government in Palestine.
http://www.state.sgov.gov/p/eur/ankara/
WILSON