This record is a partial extract of the original cable. The full text of the original cable is not available.

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 03 ANKARA 002335 
 
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 
THURSDAY, APRIL 10, 2003 
 
 
THIS REPORT WILL PRESENT A TURKISH PRESS SUMMARY UNDER THREE 
THEMES: 
 
 
HEADLINES 
BRIEFING 
EDITORIAL OPINION 
                         ------- 
 
 
HEADLINES 
 
 
MASS APPEALS 
U.S. scores a clear victory on 21st day - Hurriyet 
Saddam under Iraqis' feet - Vatan 
Saddam throws in towel on 21st day - Milliyet 
Saddam, statue toppled - Milliyet 
U.S. tank `executes' Saddam statue - Vatan 
Looting, lynching and joy in Baghdad - Hurriyet 
Baath regime's heart Baghdad under U.S. control - Turkiye 
End of the dictator - Sabah 
Rumsfeld: Saddam's end like Hitler, Stalin - Sabah 
Iraq's UN envoy: Game over - Sabah 
U.S. our `neighbor' - Aksam 
U.S. troops comfortable as tourists in Baghdad - Aksam 
Northern Iraq crisis looming - Turkiye 
U.S. doesn't expect resistance in Tikrit - Hurriyet 
Baghdad's voice, Al-Sahaf silenced - Hurriyet 
British Commander: Al-Sahaf's day off - Vatan 
 
 
OPINION MAKERS 
Baghdad in invaders' hands - Cumhuriyet 
Baghdad falls in 21 days - Radikal 
Saddam Hussein era ends - Zaman 
U.S.: Saddam missed opportunity for peaceful exile - Zaman 
Cheney: Regime collapsed, war not over yet - Zaman 
Invasion in Baghdad, massacre in south - Yeni Safak 
U.S. troops kill 1000 civilians in Najaf - Yeni Safak 
Pride and breakdown of Arab press - Zaman 
Kurds at Mosul doorstep - Cumhuriyet 
Kurds joyful in N. Iraq - Cumnhuriyet 
Looting, lynching in Basra - Radikal 
Door still open for Cyprus - Zaman 
 
 
FINANCIAL JOURNALS 
Baghdad falls, Saddam disappears - Dunya 
Saddam regime collapses - Finansal Forum 
 
 
 
 
BRIEFING 
 
 
Iraq: U.S. troops met no resistance at all in Baghdad, and 
the Iraqi capital fell on the 21st day, bringing the 24-year 
reign of the Baath regime to an end.  U.S. soldiers and 
Iraqis pulled down a 15-meter bronze statue of Saddam in the 
city center.  "Yeni Safak" says American tanks made a `show 
of force' in the heart of Baghdad, and, citing Reuters, adds 
that coalition forces carried out terrible massacres in 
southern Iraq.  Almost all papers drew a parallel between 
the overthrow of Saddam's rule and the collapse of communist 
regimes in Eastern Europe.  "Sabah" says everyone was wrong: 
The allied operation in Iraq has disproved several views, 
including the idea that Saddam would not be easily toppled, 
that Baghdad would not fall without a siege, and that the 
war couldn't be won without a northern front.  American and 
British rule has begun in Iraq, and the process of 
reshaping the Middle East has started, dailies report. 
Papers highlight the U.S. Administration's warning to Iran, 
Syria, and North Korea that Iraq should serve as a lesson to 
all.  Now Ankara turns its eyes to the Americans and the 
Kurdish groups advancing on Kirkuk and Mosul.  Citing 
American papers, "Zaman" sees a Turkish military 
intervention in Northern Iraq as unlikely, but notes that 
the U.S. is closely following the reaction of TGS Chief 
General Ozkok and political leaders in Ankara.  "Turkiye" 
reports that KDP forces are near Mosul, and that the KDP has 
surrounded  Kirkuk.  The paper claims that a crisis is 
looming in Northern Iraq.  "Aksam" reports the TGS has sent 
five officers to Northern Iraq to discuss with U.S. officers 
the position of KDP forces around Mosul.  Ankara has asked 
the KDP to end pressure on Turkomen towns.  President Sezer 
said on Wednesday that Turkey wants Mosul and Kirkuk, eyed 
by the Kurds, to remain within a united Iraq.  Meanwhile, 
the MFA stated that Ankara would not accept the condition on 
the $1 billion grant offer by the U.S. that Turkey would 
refrain from entering Northern Iraq.  Prime Minister Erdogan 
said it was the Americans' decision to provide financial aid 
to Turkey, so that Washington should refrain from giving the 
impression that there is ongoing bargaining with Ankara. 
 
 
Cyprus: Prime Minister Erdogan, who met with his Greek 
counterpart Simitis at the Balkan Summit in Belgrade, said 
that the UN peace plan for Cyprus should be reviewed, and 
that bilateral talks for a compromise should continue. 
Simitis reportedly said the Annan plan offered grounds for 
on agreement, and that negotiations should continue within 
the UN framework.  Both leaders agreed that the Cyprus 
problem must be resolved as soon as possible, and that they 
must find a way to move the process forward. 
 
 
 
 
EDITORIAL OPINION:  Fall of Baghdad 
 
 
"He did not even fire one honorary bullet" 
Editor-in-Chief of mass appeal Hurriyet, Ertugrul Ozkok 
observed (4/10): "The Saddam era has ended and the future of 
the Iraqi people is now brighter than ever before.  In the 
next 5 to 10 years, we are going to see the proper use of 
oil money - that is, for the welfare of the people as 
opposed to building kitsch palaces for dictators or 
producing chemical weapons.  It is sure that in the years 
ahead, we will observe the domino-effect on other `Baath- 
like' regimes in the region. . Yet it is also the time for 
us to get rid of the `Third world rationale' and `Saddam- 
like' mentality in Turkey.  It is just the right time to 
lift Turkey up to become a full member of the modern western 
community." 
 
 
"Iraq is only the beginning" 
Erdal Safak editorialized in the mass appeal Sabah (4/10): 
"The fall of Baghdad not only signified the end of Saddam, 
but also the end of the Eisenhower doctrine, which had 
served as a protective shield for regimes in the Middle East 
since 1956. . Following the 9/11 attacks, the US has begun 
to shape a new doctrine.  As Paul Wolfowitz defined it, `the 
US cannot possibly be safe and secure unless the Middle East 
is democratized.' . The Iraq war is just the beginning. 
Dictatorships and other backward regimes in the Middle East 
are next on the list, and it is certain that the most 
immediate concern is Syria. . Turkish Foreign Minister Gul 
should urgently cancel his upcoming trip to Damascus, which 
will only serve to increase misunderstandings between Turkey 
and the US." 
 
 
"Toward the end" 
Fehmi Koru argued in the Islamic-intellectual Yeni Safak 
(4/10): "The planners of the Iraq war did not conceal their 
intention to move toward other countries once Iraq is 
finished.  It will also be interesting to see what kind of 
administration is to be formed in post-war Iraq.  .The world 
is rapidly moving toward a new era, and it will most likely 
be formed based on the `superiority of power.'  From now on, 
the US might target any country in the world by using 
`magical' terms such as liberation and freedom." 
 
 
PEARSON