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UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 03 ANKARA 002502 
 
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 
FRIDAY, MAY 5, 2006 
 
 
In Today's Papers 
 
Erdogan, Ahmadinejad to Meet in Baku 
All papers report on Friday, Prime Minister Erdogan and 
Iranian President Ahmadinejad are to come together on the 
sidelines of the Economic Cooperation Organization (ECO) 
meeting in Baku to discuss Iran's nuclear program and anti- 
terror operations against the PKK by the Iranian and Turkish 
forces.  Erdogan is expected to urge Ahmadinejad to follow 
transparent policies with respect to Iran's nuclear program. 
Foreign Minister Gul said yesterday diplomatic means should 
be pushed for a compromise, expressing hope that the meeting 
will have a fruitful outcome.  Gul noted that the same 
messages Erdogan will give Ahmadinejad will be given to Ali 
Larijani "in strong terms" during Iran's chief nuclear 
negotiator's visit to Ankara on Monday. 
 
Erdogan and Karamanlis Stress Improving Ties at Thessalonica 
Meeting 
All papers report Prime Minister Erdogan met his Greek 
counterpart Karamanlis at the Southeast Europe Cooperation 
Process summit held in the Greek city of Thessalonica 
yesterday.  Karamanlis told the press after the meeting it 
was "understandable" that the two countries' views on 
several matters differ.  "However," Karamanlis said, "Our 
ties are much better compared to past years, and there is a 
will to improve them further."  The two leaders said their 
countries enjoyed a "strategic partnership" in economy and 
energy cooperation.  They also said the Turkish minority in 
western Thrace and the Greek Orthodox minority in Istanbul 
constituted a "historical tie of friendship."  Karamanlis 
reiterated Athens' support for Turkey's EU membership drive, 
and the two prime ministers agreed to work to increase the 
trade between the countries from USD 2 billion to 5 billion. 
 
Lagendijk Condemns PKK Terror, Urges More Kurdish Rights 
All papers:  Turkey-EU Joint Parliamentary Commission co- 
president Joost Lagendijk told the press in Ankara yesterday 
that the European Parliament condemned the PKK bombing of a 
school bus carrying the children of military personnel in 
Hakkari on Wednesday, stressing that using violence as a 
political means would lead to a "dead end."  Lagendijk 
called on Kurdish politicians and leaders to come out 
against the PKK, stressing he hopes to find such figures in 
Diyarbakir where he plans to go after wrapping up meetings 
in Ankara.  "A lot of Kurds in Turkey understand that their 
future will be a better one if Turkey becomes a part of the 
EU.  They want more rights and economic development in the 
region.  I'm deeply convinced that if that happens, the 
large majority of Kurds living here will see the benefits of 
Turkey's accession; that is what we have been seeing over 
the last couple of years.  There is no European or Kurdish 
interest in splitting up Turkey and going for a sort of land- 
locked country that will not bring them any socio-economic 
development whatsoever," Lagendijk said.  On the issue of 
granting more cultural rights to Kurds, Lagendijk noted: 
"For instance on Kurdish broadcasts, I think it would be 
very clever of the Turkish government to allow Kurdish TV 
broadcasts to flourish instead of allowing only 45 minutes a 
day.  But such things will only happen if there is an end to 
violence". 
 
EU Warns Turkey to Change Parliamentary Immunity System 
Radikal reports the Council of Europe's anti-corruption 
unit, the Group of European Countries against Corruption 
(GRECO), have asked Turkey to change its parliamentary and 
bureaucratic immunity system.  A 120-page GRECO report says 
impartial criteria freed of political calculations must be 
applied to parliamentary immunity, underlining the fact that 
the existing immunity system blocks investigation of 
 
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corruption.  The report says that none of the lawmakers' 
immunities were revoked in the 115 investigation motions 
that have been submitted to the parliament since 2002. 
 
Semdinli Trial Begins 
All papers:  The first hearing of the Semdinli case against 
three men, two of them members of Turkish armed forces, 
accused of bombing a bookstore in Semdinli, opened in a very 
tense atmosphere.  Prosecutor Metin Dikec replaced the 
dismissed prosecutor Ferhat Sarikaya.  Zaman says that 
international organizations and international news agencies 
like AFP, AP and BBC were following the trial.  The judge 
read only the summary of the indictment with the exclusion 
of the section accusing the Land Forces commander General 
Buyukanit. The claimants' lawyers asked for the judge to be 
taken off the case, stating that he had previously accused 
them of being PKK members and that there was heavy political 
pressure on the court.  The defendant's lawyers, in return, 
said that the judge had no connection with the previous 
public prosecutor; therefore, there was no need for him to 
withdraw. 
 
Diyarbakir Mayor Baydemir Cancels his Northern Iraq Trip 
Zaman, Sabah:  After planning to attend the opening of the 
Kurdish Parliament in Northern Iraq together with his party 
(DTP) leaders Ahmet Turk and Aysel Tuglu, Diyarbakir Mayor 
Osman Baydemir cancelled his trip in order to assist PM 
Erdogan in Diyarbakir during AKP congress on Sunday. 
 
"US Faces UN Investigation over CIA Torture Planes" 
Aksam, Cumhuriyet and others:  The US is going to be 
officially questioned by the UN for the first time after the 
announcement of its fight against terrorism.  The UN Counter 
Torture Committee will meet with US officials in Geneva 
today to question them about secret CIA prisons, CIA flights 
and about torture allegations in these prisons. 
 
Commentary on the US-Turkey "Strategic Vision" Document 
The US-Turkey "Strategic Vision" document, announced during 
Secretary Rice's visit to Ankara last week continues to 
 
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generate commentary. Erol Manisali, writing in left-leaning 
Cumhuriyet, calls the document "another propaganda tool," 
explaining that "Turkey and the US currently do not share a 
mutual strategic vision; instead there is a strategic 
opposition to each other's views.  For instance, regarding 
Iraq, the American vision is to establish a pro-American 
Kurdistan in northern Iraq.  Steps are underway in this 
regard and the US shares this strategic goal with Israel. 
The US also wants to make Turkey an active part of its 
regional operations.  According to Washington, Turkey must 
actively support and provide bases to any American operation 
in this region.  This is the US understanding of the meaning 
of a strategic vision." 
 
Taking the opposite view, Washington-based Hasan Mesut Hazar 
writes in the conservative daily Turkiye: "Some still argue 
that the strategic partnership is over and Washington has 
written off Turkey's ruling party.  They tend to ignore the 
fact that the US continues to pursue a strategic 
relationship with many countries, including India, Israel, 
UK, Greece, Poland and Pakistan.  A strategic relationship 
does not require a mutual consensus on every issue.  A 
strategic relationship can be defined via mutual interests 
and cooperation.  Unlike US-Israel relations, Washington's 
relationship with Ankara is strategic but not vital.  And it 
does not have to be, because Turkey and the US are in NATO. 
Rice's visit to Ankara was a very successful event and the 
upcoming strategic vision document will help to express to 
the public the nature and content of bilateral ties between 
the two countries." 
 
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TV Highlights 
NTV (8 a.m.) 
 
Domestic News 
- Kurdish party DTP's provincial chief in the Mediterranean 
port city of Mersin, Ali Bozan, has been arrested for 
involvement in separatist activities. 
 
- EU Parliament's Turkey rapporteur Camiel Eurlings has 
urged Ankara to carry on with the process of reforms, asking 
for the reopening of Halki Seminary. 
 
- A Turkish high court overturned a court verdict which 
ruled that compensation be paid by retired General Osman 
Ozbek for criticizing Prime Ministry Under Secretary Omer 
Dincer's views by saying they are not compatible with the 
Turkish Constitution. 
 
International News 
- Ehud Olmert has presented his new cabinet to Knesset. 
"The borders of Israel that will be formed in the coming 
years will be significantly different from the territories 
under Israel's control today," Olmert said. 
 
- Amnesty International said torture and other inhuman or 
degrading treatment of detainees by US forces are widespread 
and, in many cases, sanctioned by top government officials. 
 
- Danish Prime Minister Rasmussen said neither Turkey nor 
the EU were ready for Turkey's EU accession. 
 
- President Bush and the Germany Chancellor Merkel said 
they're united in efforts to prevent Iran from building a 
nuclear bomb. 
 
 
 Visit Ankara's Classified Web Site at 
 
  http://www.state.sgov.gov/p/eur/ankara/ 
 
WILSON