VZCZCXRO2212
OO RUEHDA
DE RUEHAK #1160/01 0671437
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
O 081437Z MAR 06
FM AMEMBASSY ANKARA
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC IMMEDIATE 3751
RUEKJCS/CJCS WASHDC IMMEDIATE
RUEKJCS/SECDEF WASHDC IMMEDIATE
RUEKJCS/OSD WASHDC//PA
RUEUITH/ODC ANKARA TU
INFO RUEHTH/AMEMBASSY ATHENS 7000
RUEHIT/AMCONSUL ISTANBUL 0007
RUEHDA/AMCONSUL ADANA 0475
RUEHBS/AMEMBASSY BRUSSELS 5149
RUEHBS/USEU BRUSSELS
RUEHNO/USMISSION USNATO 4856
RUCNDT/USMISSION USUN NEW YORK 1474
RUEUITH/DET 1 39LG ANKARA TU
RHMFIUU/CDRUSAE IZMIR 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 001160 
 
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 
WEDNESDAY, MARCH 8, 2006 
 
In Today's Papers 
 
Debates over Accusations against General Buyukanit 
All papers:  Prime Minister Erdogan accused the main 
opposition CHP leader Deniz Baykal and the press of trying 
to cause a rift between the government and military by 
confusing people about the charges directed by a prosecutor 
against Land Forces Commander General Yasar Buyukanit. 
Erdogan told his party parliamentary group meeting yesterday 
that confrontation between the judiciary and military will 
not benefit Turkey.  General Hilmi Ozkok, the chief of the 
Turkish General Staff (TGS) told President Sezer at a 
meeting on Tuesday that the accusations against Buyukanit 
were designed to damage the military.  Ozkok also complained 
that the military's maneuvering area has been restricted by 
the anti-terror laws passed by the parliament.  Vatan claims 
that some commanders in the military are concerned that anti- 
TGS political elements regarding the military as an obstacle 
against their aspirations have been encouraged by the "soft" 
attitude of General Ozkok.  Government Spokesman Cicek 
denied any involvement by the government in the judicial 
proceeding against Buyukanit, adding that  if it contained 
deficiencies, the investigation file could be rejected by 
the court. 
 
MFA: Turkey Wants Enhanced Cooperation in Black Sea 
Hurriyet, Sabah, Cumhuriyet, Radikal, Yeni Safak:  "Turkey 
believes that regional cooperation will contribute to peace 
and stability in the Black Sea, and has pioneered the 
initiatives to establish the Black Sea Economic Cooperation 
(BSEC)," Turkish Foreign Ministry (MFA) Spokesman Namik Tan 
said on Tuesday with regard to press reports that a NATO 
force will be set up in the Black Sea.  "We also proposed 
the formation of BLACKSEAFOR (Black Sea Naval Cooperation 
Task Force) by littoral states to assure the security in the 
Black Sea.  Turkey, Romania and Bulgaria, the three 
countries that have joined this force, are NATO members.  We 
have also launched Operation Black Sea Harmony, inviting all 
littoral states.  We are sharing the intelligence we collect 
from this operation with our allies," Tan stressed.  Yeni 
Safak claims that Turkey and Russia block US aspirations to 
deploy military in the Black Sea and the Caucasus.  The 
paper comments that the US intends to control the Blue 
Stream natural gas pipeline with a prospective annexation of 
an oil pipeline, warning that Ankara's sovereignty over the 
Straits will be damaged. 
 
Iran-West Standoff Over Tehran's Nuclear Program 
Sabah, Milliyet, Vatan, Cumhuriyet, Radikal, Zaman, Yeni 
Safak:  Tehran rejected a plan by the international 
community under which Iran would suspend industrial-scale 
uranium enrichment for two years.  After talks with the US, 
Russia's Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said Russia had made 
no a "compromise" proposal that would allow Iran to enrich 
uranium, even in small quantities.  Iran views enriching 
work as involving up to 3,000 centrifuges that enrich 
uranium, an industrial-level figure according to experts. 
The United States believe that Iran has already "crossed the 
international red line."  Turkish papers quote Iranian 
officials as saying, "Whenever we agree, the US breaks it 
up."  Meanwhile, several Turkish dailies cite a Washington 
Post article which said Turkey is reviving its quest for 
nuclear power, pressed both by serious energy shortfalls and 
by "strident nuclear ambitions in neighboring Iran," 
underlining that any Turkish move toward a nuclear weapons 
program would mark a dramatic departure from long-standing 
foreign policy and military doctrine seen in a slogan of 
Ataturk, "Peace at home, peace in the world." 
 
 
ANKARA 00001160  002 OF 003 
 
 
Columnist Sami Kohen warned that the Iran issue is not only 
about its nuclear enrichment program.  In his column in the 
mainstream Milliyet he drew attention to the dangers of the 
Iranian regime: "The current behavior of the Iranian 
administration and its policy goals cause worry.  Ankara is 
disturbed by Ahmedinejad's tension building policy, and 
believes that the Middle East needs steps toward calm and 
compromise more than ever before.  There is also an Iraq 
angle to the worry about Iran.  Tehran is apparently very 
pleased with the rise of Shiite power in Iraq.  If a Shiite 
state is created in the south of Iraq, the mullahs of Iran 
will undoubtedly be very active." 
 
Ruling out the possibility of a military action, nationalist 
Ortadogu columnist Kamuran Ozbir observed: "From 
Washington's point of view, it seems unlikely for Bush to 
take military action against Iran while the Iraqi swamp 
deepens.  If common sense and rationalism prevail in the 
world, the Iran tension will be resolved eventually." 
 
Gul Due in US 
Cumhuriyet, Zaman and others:  Foreign Minister Abdullah Gul 
is to meet UN Secretary General Annan in New York and 
Secretary Rice in Washington on March 26-29 at the annual 
 
SIPDIS 
meeting of the American-Turkish Council (ATC).  Gul will 
address the ATC on Turkey-US ties, and discuss Cyprus and 
other regional issues with Annan and Rice. 
 
OSCE: Conditions Improve in Guantanamo 
Hurriyet, Cumhuriyet:  Inmates at Guantanamo Bay prison are 
treated better than in Belgian jails, a report by the 
Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) 
said after a visit to the controversial detention center. 
OSCE member Belgian Senator Anne-Marie Lizin said conditions 
in Guantanamo have recently improved, warning that the 
prison should not be closed immediately because countries 
like Yemen and Saudi Arabia would not immediately allow the 
return of their nationals kept there. 
 
Turkey Approves Armenia's Membership in Eurocontrol 
Cumhriyet reports that Turkey, under EU pressure toimprove 
ties with neighboring countries, approved Armenia's request 
for membership in Eurocontrol, the European Organization for 
the Safety of Air Navigation.  Turkey began to carry out win- 
win policies in dealings with Armenia, says the paper. 
 
Turkish Media Watchdog Allows Broadcasts in Kurdish 
Milliyet, Sabah, Cumhuriyet, Radikal, Zaman:  Turkish Radio 
and Television High Board (RTUK) authorized the Diyarbakir- 
based Gun TV and Soz TV, and Sanlyurfa-based Medya FM radio 
to commence broadcasts in Kurdish.  Local TV channels will 
be allowed to air four hours and radio stations five hours 
of programs weekly. 
 
Turkish Women Uneducated, Subject to Violence 
Milliyet says on the occasion of World Women's Day that 34 
percent of Turkish families suffer domestic violence in 
which 46 percent of children are beaten.  Eighty percent of 
women victims believe they are helpless in blocking domestic 
violence.  Forty-five percent of males believe they have the 
right to beat women in cases of disobedience.  39.6 percent 
of women aged 15-24 are unemployed, and one out of four 
women is illiterate.  Only 3.9 percent of women are 
university graduates and women make 40 percent less than men 
in professional life. 
 
TV Highlights 
NTV, 8 AM 
 
 
ANKARA 00001160  003 OF 003 
 
 
Domestic News 
- Turkish Foreign Ministry Spokesman Namik Tan said the 
escape of DHKP-C militant Fehriye Erdal severed the 
credibility of Belgian security forces.  The extreme-leftist 
DHKP-C allegedly threatened to kill the Belgian prosecutor 
who convicted Erdal for crimes committed in Belgium. 
 
- A third motion on Finance Minister Kemal Unakitan filed by 
the opposition CHP will be discussed in the Turkish 
Parliament on March 14.  The motion accuses the finance 
minister of abusing his position, influencing tenders, and 
of causing the state to incur losses. 
 
- Three local TV channels have been granted permission to 
kick off Kurdish language broadcasts. 
 
International News 
- At least 15 are killed in a series of bomb blasts in the 
holy Hindu city of Varanasi in northern India. 
 
- US Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld has accused Iran of 
infiltrating members of Iranian Republican Guards into Iraq. 
 
- The new Hamas-dominated Palestinian Authority Parliament 
stripped President Mahmoud Abbas of excessive powers granted 
to him in the final days of the previous parliament, 
dominated by the outgoing Fatah Party.  Israel warned that 
if attacks continue, Israel will target Palestinian 
"political and military leaders." 
 
- At least 8,000 US troops have defected from the armed 
forces since the war with Iraq began in 2003, the Pentagon 
said. 
 
- Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for Europe Matthew 
Bryza visits Armenia. 
 
- Azerbaijani and Armenian forces exchanged heavy gunfire 
and mortars at several points along their border.  An 
Azerbaijani soldier is killed and several Armenian troops 
are wounded. 
 
- South Dakota has passed a bill outlawing abortion. 
 
Economy News 
- Turkey's textile industry is not happy with a government- 
announced cut of 10 percent in VAT, and also wants lower 
energy and employment costs as well as curbing the value of 
the Turkish lira against the USD. 
 
- Parliament's budget commission is discussing a draft to 
make truckers going abroad tax-exempt. 
 
WILSON