TURKEY: PRAISE FOR POTUS'S SPEECH TO PARLIAMENT

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 03 ANKARA 000516 SIPDIS E.O. 12958: DECL: 04/07/2019 TAGS: PGOV PHUM PREL OSCE TU SUBJECT: TURKEY: PRAISE FOR POTUS'S SPEECH TO PARLIAMENT REF: ANKARA 515 Classified By: DCM Doug Silliman for reasons 1.4(b,d) ¶1. (C) Summary: President Obama's speech to Turkish Parliament -- the most public aspect of his Turkey visit -- was widely praised among our political and civil society contacts. All segments of the Turkish government and state in attendance resoundingly applauded the President's statement of support for Turkey in its fight against the PKK and its path to join the EU. Although the more controversial elements of the speech -- such as the President's call for Turkey to step up its democratization efforts, respect minority rights, and reopen Halki Seminary -- drew minimal applause, AKP MPs and civil society members told us that Turkey needed to hear such an "honest" and straightforward message. In contrast to AKP and civil society members' standing ovation for the President upon conclusion of his speech, the main opposition CHP, opposition MHP, and the Turkish military members in attendance sat quietly, and have been cautious in their subsequent remarks about the speech. Despite the opposition's more subdued response, Turkish pundits agree that the speech was a groundbreaking success that will set the tone for a new era in Turkish-American relations. End summary. -------------- President Speaks to a Diverse Crowd -------------- ¶2. (U) In an April 6 special session of Parliament, President Obama addressed 547 MPs, Prime Minister Erdogan and his cabinet, President Gul, the TGS chief and senior military leaders, the Constitutional Court Chairman and senior judges, and former state leaders, the diplomatic corps, and prominent civil society leaders (invited as guests of the Embassy) from business, academia, media, and the NGO community. "Milliyet's" Fikret Bila praised the Embassy for including "all colors of society without excluding any sector," noting that the section included "prominent secularists, academics known for their Kurdish identity, headscarved women, and a wide range of journalists from across the media spectrum." -------------- Speech Receives Wide Praise -------------- ¶3. (C) Following the speech, a number of our contacts praised the direct manner in which the President delivered his messages on several controversial issues. AKP Gaziantep MP Fatma Sahin told us, "the speech was perfect. He did not refrain from saying things in a straightforward manner. We need leaders like this who speak in direct terms." Halil Sivgin, President of the Turkish Democracy Development Foundation and a former Health Minister, praised the President's delivery, and noted that he said a few things that "needed to be said." MFA Director General for the Americas Vehefan Ocak told us that the speech had done a masterful job of raising difficult issues -- Armenia, Kurds, Halki -- by combining them in a very attractive package that, as the President stated in his speech, "put Turkey at the center of things." Parliament's Protocol Director, an MFA officer, told us that the speech had been unusually "direct" as should be the case when two friends speak candidly to each other. Opposition Nationalist Action Party (MHP) MP Mithat Melen told us that Obama's speech was an important step forward in healing Turkish-American relations after seven years of "wrong politics" and a "wrong approach." Melen said that it was not necessary for the President to mention Halki Seminary, but that he and his colleagues appreciated Obama's promise to "consult with friends even if we don't agree on everything." ¶4. (U) AKP MPs gave loud applause during many of the President's main points: Turkey is a secular democracy; Turkey is rooted in Europe and the U.S. gives full support to Turkey's EU bid; the U.S. supports Turkey in its fight against the PKK and terror; and the U.S. is not and will not be at war with Islam. All AKPers gave loud applause after the speech when Obama and Erdogan exchanged the traditional Turkish kiss on the cheek. They then rushed toward the President to shake his hand. ANKARA 00000516 002 OF 003 ¶5. (C) Civil society representatives from across the country resoundingly praised the speech. Zeynep Onen, President of the Vehbi Koc Foundation, said, "I loved his remarks and the issues he emphasized. He underlined peace, not hatred." Rojbin Tugan, a noted human rights attorney from the southeastern province of Hakkari (and a former embassy nominee for the Department's Woman of Courage award),told us that the President's message praising the liberalization of restrictions on the use of Kurdish language and call for Turkey to address the Kurdish issue with non-military measures "was a truly historical moment." Human rights attorney Orhan Kemal Cengiz (the runner-up for the Department's 2008 Human Rights Defender Award) said the President's decision to state on the floor of Parliament that Turkey should re-open Halki Seminary and improve minority rights, was "a groundbreaking moment in a country that still does not officially recognize the term 'minority.'" -------------- Opposition and Military More Subdued -------------- ¶6. (SBU) Opposition MPs and the military were more cautious than AKP in their reactions during and after the speech. Main opposition Republican People's Party (CHP) clapped loudly during President Obama's statement of support in countering the PKK, and CHP and the military applauded his statements about secularism, but were silent when the President mentioned Islam and the events of 1915. In contrast to AKP's behavior following the speech, CHP did not stand during the President's departure. CHP leader Deniz Baykal bluntly told reporters that "there was no surprise in his speech." One former CHP MP told us that overall the speech had a "very positive tone, especially when he emphasized secular democratic, western characteristics of Turkey," but still required "deep analysis." ¶7. (SBU) MHP MPs also kept their applause to a minimum and did not stand for the President's departure. MHP leader Devlet Bahceli, addressing his Parliamentary group on April 7, said that it was "an important development to listen to the President of an economic and military power," and that "the two countries must respect the legitimate and rightful sensitivities of each other while acting in line with the spirit of friendly and allied countries." But he criticized Obama's words on the events of 1915, saying, "Obama gave examples from his own history and said that we should face our history. This was something impolite and we cannot tolerate it." MHP Vice Chairman Deniz Bolukbasi told "CNN Turk" that he was disappointed with the speech because he felt like Obama was "reciting passages from Ollie Rehn's progress report." ¶8. (SBU) Chief of the Turkish General Staff General Ilker Basbug attended the speech, accompanied by all force commanders (Army Chief GEN Kosaner, Air Force Chief GEN Babaoglu, Navy Chief Admiral Atac, and Jandarma Chief Isik). The military's attendance in itself was significant because military leaders had boycotted all events at Parliament since the July 2007 general elections, when the Kurdish Democratic Society Party (DTP) entered Parliament. The military representatives stood twice during the speech: first when Turkish President and Commander in Chief Abdullah Gul was introduced (Note: The military's acknowledgment of President Gul was out of respect for his position and does not reflect any warm feelings the military has for Abdullah Gul himself. End Note) and again when President Obama made his initial entrance into the parliament chamber. The military sat mostly motionless throughout the speech, but did join the applause when President Obama declared that "as President and a NATO ally, I pledge that you will have our support against the terrorist activities of the PKK." -------------- Media Praise -------------- ¶9. (U) Media outlets raved about Obama's speech and visit in general (reftel). Mainstream "Milliyet" noted that "Obama created a new era at the Parliament by setting off on a ANKARA 00000516 003 OF 003 journey with Turkey." "Haberturk" headlined, "He Didn't Back Down," as Obama "delivered important messages to the world." Islamist-oriented "Yeni Safak columnist Ali Bayramoglu commented that "it seems the new Washington administration does not share the former administration's obsession with security threats and the new Washington will focus on ways to overcome religious, cultural and other differences." Mainstream "Vatan's" Gungor Mengi wrote that "the walls have been brought down" and that the visit "healed rifts created by Bush." Leftist-nationalist "Cumhuriyet" commented that "Obama has proven that he is different from George Bush by showing that he does not see Turkey as a moderate Islamic State but as a secularist democracy." Visit Ankara's Classified Web Site at http://www.intelink.sgov.gov/wiki/Portal:Turk ey Jeffrey