VZCZCXRO2263
OO RUEHDBU RUEHFL RUEHKW RUEHLA RUEHNP RUEHROV RUEHSL RUEHSR
DE RUEHAK #0023/01 0070925
ZNY CCCCC ZZH
O 070925Z JAN 10
FM AMEMBASSY ANKARA
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC IMMEDIATE 1621
INFO RUEHZL/EUROPEAN POLITICAL COLLECTIVE PRIORITY

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 ANKARA 000023 
 
SIPDIS 
 
DEPARTMENT ALSO FOR EUR/SE 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL: 01/07/2019 
TAGS: CY PREL TU US
SUBJECT: TURKISH MFA: LEGAL FRAMEWORK UNDERWAY TO OPEN HALKI 
 
REF: A. 09 ANKARA 1700 
     ¶B. 09 ANKARA 1029 
     ¶C. 09 ISTANBUL 467 
 
Classified By: POL Counselor Daniel O'Grady for reasons 1.4 (b,d) 
 
¶1. (C) SUMMARY.  The Turkish MFA told us January 6 it is 
preparing a legal framework for the opening of Halki Seminary 
that will center on Article 40 of the Lausanne Treaty, which 
gives non-Muslim minorities the right to manage their own 
religious institutions.  The MFA said using the Lausanne 
Treaty is preferred because international agreements take 
precedence over national laws and court rulings, but that 
Lausanne still presents problems for Halki's admission of 
foreign students.  The legal framework is near completion, at 
which point it will be presented to PM Erdogan for approval. 
The GOT appears resolute on moving forward on Halki without 
insisting on parallel improvements for the Turkish Muslim 
Minority in Greece -- despite PM Erdogan's recent public 
comments.  But the current political climate, given the 
ruling party's lagging poll numbers, is not ideal for a move 
that will be interpreted by the opposition as abandoning 
ethnic Turks in Greek Thrace.  END SUMMARY. 
 
¶2. (C) In a January 6 discussion, the MFA's Deputy Director 
General for Greece and Cyprus, Kerim Uras, told us that the 
MFA will soon finish a legal framework for the opening of 
Halki Seminary which will be presented to Foreign Minister 
Davutoglu and Prime Minister Erdogan for their approval. 
Uras said at that point the issue will "be in the hands of 
the politicians," but that the GOT already has shifted away 
from its long-held stance of insisting on improved conditions 
for the Muslim minority living in Greek Thrace before taking 
action on Halki.  The concept of holding the rights of Greek 
Orthodox Turkish citizens hostage to the actions of a foreign 
government is now considered "primitive" and inappropriate, 
Uras said. 
 
¶3. (C) Uras conceded that PM Erdogan's recent remarks on the 
Halki issue had reiterated the familiar quid-pro-quo approach 
which has long defined the GOT's position on Halki, but 
suggested that Erdogan may have felt compelled to frame the 
issue as he did because the Government is feeling defensive 
about its Democratic Opening initiative.  The Prime Minister 
could not afford to appear as if he has lost interest in the 
welfare of ethnic Turks in Greece.  As a politician, the 
Prime Minister must be sensitive to public opinion.  Still, 
Uras said, "this is a PR problem, not a policy problem." 
 
¶4. (C) Uras said the proposed legal framework will center on 
Article 40 of the Lausanne Treaty, and that this approach is 
considered preferable because international treaties have 
precedence over Turkish national laws and internal court 
rulings (NOTE: This is according to Article 90 of the Turkish 
Constitution. END NOTE).  Article 40 states that "Turkish 
nationals belonging to non-Muslim minorities shall enjoy the 
same treatment and security in law and in fact as other 
Turkish nationals.  In particular, they shall have an equal 
right to establish, manage and control at their own expense, 
any charitable, religious and social institutions, any 
schools and other establishments for instruction and 
education, with the right to use their own language and to 
exercise their own religion freely therein." 
 
¶5. (C) However, the Lausanne Treaty's main drawback is that 
it does not explicitly authorize Halki Seminary's potential 
admission of foreign students, which is a priority for the 
Patriachate given the diminished ethnic Greek population in 
Turkey.  The MFA's legal advisors are considering different 
ways that this could be rectified.  The proposed legal 
framework envisions Halki being nominally overseen by the 
Ministry of Education, and not the Higher Education Council 
(YOK) because YOK regulations require its institutions to be 
open to both genders but Halki would only be open to males. 
In addition YOK rules do not permit students to wear clerical 
robes. 
 
¶6. (C) Uras said that last week he personally briefed the 
Patriach and two of his advisors on the MFA's current 
thinking and had asked the Patriarchate for advice on ways to 
overcome certain legal obstacles, such as the admission of 
foreign students.  The Patriachate had suggested defining 
Halki as a vocational school, but the MFA concluded that this 
would not work.  Uras said he has had regular consultations 
with the Patriarch over the past year. (NOTE: This 
contradicts what we have been told by the Patriarch and his 
staff members. END NOTE) 
 
¶7. (C) The situation of ethnic Turks in Thrace and elsewhere 
in Greece remains a top concern for the GOT, Uras emphasized. 
 But Ankara is convinced its best course is to move forward 
 
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on Halki and then call on the Greek Government to take 
appropriate measures.  He said the GOT's current complaints 
include: 
-- the Turkish Muslim Minority's elected Muftis are unable to 
function because the Greek Government has decreed that only 
its own Athens-appointed Muftis have authority; 
-- the Greek Government has been expropriating land in Thrace 
belonging to the Muslim minority; 
-- the GOG has manipulated foundation boards in Thrace to 
sell off foundation property; 
-- the GOG has capped at 15 the number of Turkish citizens 
who are allowed to enter Greece and work as teachers for the 
two Muslim Minority schools in Thrace, when some 35-40 are 
needed; 
-- the GOG has not allowed a mosque to be built in Athens, 
and does not allow the Muslim minority in Thessaloniki to use 
any of the mosques in that city, even for religious holidays. 
 
¶8. (C) COMMENT: Uras's presentation tracks with what we heard 
from Prime Ministry and Directorate of Religious Affairs 
(Diyanet) officials last July (REF B).  It is also 
encouraging that the MFA is reporting that it has had regular 
consultations with the Patriarchate, since this issue will 
require both sides to be in sync.  Still, we can appreciate 
that the timinig of such a move will be delicate for the 
ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP), which already is 
hearing a clamor from the ethnic Turks in Thrace that they 
should not be "abandoned." 
SILLIMAN 
 
           "Visit Ankara's Classified Web Site at http://www.intelink.s 
gov.gov/wiki/Portal:Turkey"