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 002491 
 
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, APRIL 16, 2003 
 
 
THIS REPORT WILL PRESENT A TURKISH PRESS SUMMARY UNDER THREE 
THEMES: 
 
 
HEADLINES 
BRIEFING 
EDITORIAL OPINION 
                         ------- 
 
 
HEADLINES 
 
 
MASS APPEALS 
Powell: Disappointed with Turkey, now it's history - Aksam 
2004 Elections oblige Bush to suspend war with Syria - Vatan 
Syria rift: Bush vs. Rumsfeld - Turkiye 
Opposition rolls sleeves for new Iraq - Sabah 
Turkish builders eye $20 billion Iraqi market - Milliyet 
Athens aims to by-pass Denktas - Hurriyet 
Turkey's 50-year Cyprus policy now bankrupt - Tercuman 
EU pressures Turkey on `political criteria' - Aksam 
Nasiriyah summit disappoints Garner - Aksam 
Iraqis oppose to U.S. troops in Mosul, 10 civilians killed - 
Turkiye 
U.S. troops fire on Mosul civilians, 10 dead - DB-Tercuman 
ONW to leave Turkey - Tercuman 
 
 
OPINION MAKERS 
EU puts focus on NSC, torture in Turkey - Radikal 
Greek Cypriots in EU: Ankara should be proud - Radikal 
Greek Cypriots in EU: Cyprus problem deepened - Zaman 
Gul won't attend EU signing ceremony - Cumhuriyet 
U.S. troops massacre protesters in Mosul - Yeni Safak 
Kurds force Arabs out of villages - Yeni Safak 
Iraqi Shiites expect sovereignty - Zaman 
 
 
FINANCIAL JOURNALS 
Turkish businessmen lobby in U.S. for Iraqi market - Dunya 
Turkey still hopeful for tourism season - Finansal Forum 
 
 
 
 
BRIEFING 
 
 
Iraq: Dailies give extensive coverage to SecState Powell's 
meeting with the foreign press at the FPC on Tuesday.  The 
U.S. was disappointed by the Turkish parliament's rejection 
of the foreign troops decree, but was also pleased by the 
Turks' opening an air corridor to support the campaign 
against Iraq, Powell said.  He noted that consultation with 
Turkey would continue on regional issues, and that the U.S. 
has been taking into account Ankara's sensitivities 
regarding Northern Iraq.  Powell added that he had not yet 
decided on the Congress-approved $1 billion grant for 
Turkey, which was tied to Turkish troops' not going into 
Northern Iraq, and stressed that he would consult the U.S. 
Treasury and international financial institutions before 
releasing the money.  Papers comment that  U.S. sources' 
view that these remarks as meaning that the U.S. would 
review Turkey's economic policy and discuss it with the IMF. 
Meanwhile, papers report that PUK peshmerges, through 
looting and intimidation,  are forcing Arabs in Kirkuk to 
leave their homes.  KDP leader Barzani has called on Kurds 
exiled during the Saddam regime to return to their homes. 
The Turkomen complained about Turkish liaison reports from 
the region which implied that conditions in Mosul and Kirkuk 
are stable.  The Turkomen claim that peshmerges have 
destroyed deed records and aimed to cleanse the region of 
Turks.  The TGS announced on Tuesday that 1,166 U.S. troops 
deployed in Turkey within the framework of the ONW mandate 
have started to leave. 
 
 
EU: Mainstream papers find it `sad' that Turkey, after 
having waited for 44 years to join the European family, will 
today have to merely watch the accession of ten countries 
that had no democracy or free market economy until the 
1990s.  EU leaders agree that Turkey's EU membership will be 
extremely difficult if a solution to the Cyprus problem is 
not reached before 2004.  Launching the fiercest criticism 
of Ankara's policies on the EU and Cyprus, "Radikal" carried 
front-page photos of Turkish Prime Ministers since 1974, 
saying (sarcastically) that they should be `proud' of the 
pain Turkey is suffering today.  All papers are pessimistic 
on Cyprus, pointing out that Ankara will have to debate the 
Cyprus issue with the EU once the Greek Cypriots are 
admitted to the union.  The EU has approved a new Accession 
Partnership Accord with requirements for Turkey: Ankara 
should support efforts for a solution in Cyprus; more is 
expected in the government's fight against torture; prison 
conditions should be improved; the National Security Council 
(NSC) should be put under civilian control; freedom of 
expression should be expanded and restriction on the press 
should be removed; the right to education and broadcast in 
mother tongues, including Kurdish, should be guaranteed.  If 
Turkey meets these requirements, accession negotiations with 
the EU will begin in December 2004.  The Greek government 
said that Greek Cypriots would not attempt to block Ankara's 
EU accession if the Cyprus problem is resolved. 
 
 
Cyprus: "Hurriyet" reports that in an effort to by-pass 
Denktas, Greek Prime Minister Simitis has invited Turkish 
Cypriot opposition leaders to a meeting in Southern Cyprus 
to discuss the future of the island.  Three opposition 
parties have accepted the invitation.  Simitis is expected 
to highlight the benefits of EU accession for Cyprus, and 
also offer the issuance of Greek Cypriot passport to Turks. 
Denktas strongly criticized the Simitis initiative.  On the 
other hand, Denktas said that Foreign Minister Gul, in order 
to protest the Greek Cypriots' accession drive, should not 
have gone to Athens at all.  The AKP leadership condemned 
Denktas' statement, saying that the Turkish Cypriot leader 
had `gone too far.' 
 
 
 
 
EDITORIAL OPINION: 
 
 
a) Post war scenarios 
b) Cyprus and Turkish foreign policy 
 
 
"Transformation and Pax Americana" 
Cengiz Candar wrote in the conservative "DB-Tercuman" 
(4/16): "This is the beginning of a grand transformation 
process.  It is also clear that the building of a `Pax 
Americana' is in the works and the initial steps are being 
taken in the Middle East.  .. As British writer William 
Shawcross stated in one of his King's College speeches, the 
US is the only power capable of preserving and developing 
the liberal, democratic world.  The US is a driving force 
for progress also in the Islamic world.  I know this might 
be upsetting for many, including Arabs and the Europeans, 
but this is the reality and it cannot be changed." 
 
 
"Syria is next, but." 
Hasan Cemal opined in mass appeal Milliyet (4/16): "It is 
for sure that the Syrian regime is the next target, but it 
is also unlikely that a military operation against Syria is 
imminent.  The US seems to be giving priority to diplomatic 
pressure.  In fact, Washington has already started pushing 
the Damascus regime to end its support for terrorist 
organizations.  It remains to be seen whether the Syrian 
regime is going to change voluntarily. . If Syria manages to 
change by itself without the use of force, and if 
Palestinian-Israel peace is achieved, these developments 
might even create pressure on Iranian fundamentalists and 
encourage the reformists." 
 
 
"To look and to see" 
Semih Idiz observes a major failure of Turkish foreign 
policy in mass appeal Aksam (4/16): "Turkish foreign policy 
is experiencing an utter failure at this point.  Turkey has 
turned into a loser both at the UN and the EU -- not only on 
the Cyprus issue, but on the Iraq issue as well.  This fact 
does not mean that Turkey should start whining with a 
`nobody wants me' sentiment.  Turkey better be thinking 
about the reasons for its alienation in the international 
arena, and come up with a rational solution.  Yet this 
approach requires vision - discerning eyes that can not only 
look, but also can see.  However, current developments on 
both Cyprus and Iraq clearly prove that Turkey is suffering 
significantly from a lack of vision." 
 
 
PEARSON