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UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 ANKARA 004237 
 
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 
THURSDAY, JULY 20, 2006 
 
 
In Today's Papers 
 
Prime Minister Erdogan Reaffirms Support for Turkish Republic of 
Northern Cyprus (TRNC) 
All papers: Arriving in northern Cyprus for the 32nd anniversary of 
the Turkish intervention, Prime Minister Erdogan expressed Ankara's 
determination to continue supporting Turkish Cypriots in all areas 
and said that Turkey should not be expected to make more concessions 
in Cyprus. Erdogan urged the international community to end the 
isolation of the TRNC.   The Prime Minister yesterday met with TRNC 
President Talat, the Prime Minister and the Parliament Speaker. 
Meanwhile, State Department Deputy Assistant Secretary Matt Bryza 
said that it is a very positive development for Papadopoulos and 
Talat to agree to meet, and that Washington is determined to support 
the United Nations' efforts to resolve the Cyprus dispute. 
 
Syrian President Assad Calls Erdogan to Discuss Lebanon Cease-fire; 
Evacuees Arrive in Turkey 
Sabah, Bugun, Milliyet and others:  While the evacuation of 
foreigners from Lebanon continued, Syrian President Assad called 
Prime Minister Erdogan and asked for his assistance in reaching a 
cease-fire in Lebanon.  Sabah reports that the US has sent four 
military ships to Lebanon for its citizens there.  A group of 
Swedish evacuees landed in the Turkish Mediterranean port city of 
Mersin yesterday. 
 
Commentary on the Middle East Conflict 
Writing in liberal Radikal, Ismet Berkan observed that Israel's 
actions are only serving to weaken the Lebanese government and by 
extension strengthen Iran and Syria: "There is a serious conflict 
between Israel's declared targets and the actual implementation. 
Israel wants the Lebanese army to station troops on the border to 
weaken Hezbollah's power. At the same time Israeli attacks are 
hitting the Lebanese army as well which in fact weakens the 
democratically elected Beirut government.  In short Israel is doing 
wrong, although there is no way to defend Hezbollah's presence 
either - it is an organization aiming to destabilize the region and 
act as a branch of Iran and Syria in Lebanon.  But given the current 
situation, Israel seems to be leaving the control fully to Iran and 
Syria by destroying Lebanon and by causing and extraordinary number 
of civilians killings. " 
 
Writing in the Islamist-intellectual Zaman, Fikret Ertan, sees no 
end in sight to the situation: "As the Israeli military operation in 
Lebanon reaches its 9th day, where there is still no sign of 
ceasefire.  On the contrary there are strong indications that the 
attack will continue for two or three weeks with all its harshness 
and cruelty.  Israeli generals have already and openly declared that 
additional time -- up to three weeks -- is needed to finish the job. 
 Israeli sources also admit that despite air, sea and land forces 
continuous bombardments, Hezbollah has only lost half of its 
military capability.  Given the current missile attacks against 
Israel from Hezbollah-controlled areas, Hezbollah has still a 
significant supply of missiles.  It seems there is no sign of hope 
for a settlement unless there is an unexpected and sudden 
ceasefire." 
 
 
Debates on a Possible Turkish Cross-Border Operation in Iraq 
Radikal, Hurriyet, Milliyet, Sabah, Bugun, Vatan, and others:  Prime 
Minister Erdogan confirmed military plans yesterday for a possible 
cross-border operation to eliminate terrorist bases in Northern Iraq 
and said that Turkey is waiting for replies from Washington and 
Baghdad on Ankara's request for concrete steps.  Meanwhile, at the 
daily press briefing, US State Department spokesman Sean McCormack 
stressed US opposition to any unilateral move by Turkey.  Milliyet, 
citing the US Embassy press release of yesterday, said that 'the 
words of US Ambassador Ross Wilson have been misunderstood.  Turkey, 
like every country, has a right and obligation to defend itself and 
its people.'   The US Embassy press release has been distributed to 
 
ANKARA 00004237  002 OF 002 
 
 
the press in Washington by the State department, Milliyet notes. 
 
Comparing the Turkish stance on the Israeli actions against 
Hezbollah to its stance on actions against the PKK in Iraq, Ertugrul 
Ozkok commented in the mass appeal Hurriyet: "Turkey has taken a 
leading role in the Middle East crisis, actively engaging in some 
initiatives even though some of them have not been welcomed by the 
US or Israel.  All of this might be attractive to the domestic 
audience.  At this point, I can't help but act as devil's advocate. 
Is it really in our interest to take an actively binding role in the 
Middle East crisis as it has been a problem for half a century and 
while Turkey suffers from its own terrorism problem?  Putting aside 
the voices of fanatics, anyone sensible can see that overreacting to 
Israel and acting even more militantly than Egypt and Saudi Arabia 
is an unnecessary thing.   Moreover Turkey should be very careful 
when criticizing others' way of fighting against terrorism while it 
has plenty of its own terrorism problems.  Regarding the recent 
polemic between the US Ambassador and Prime Minister Erdogan, we 
should understand that asking the US to stop Israel and to support 
Turkey can only weaken our case.  What we see today is the fact that 
Turkish policies regarding the Middle East and northern Iraq have 
completely collapsed as a natural consequence of the rejection of 
March 1 parliamentary motion." 
 
TV Highlights 
NTV, 8.00 p.m 
Domestic News 
Q A police helicopter has crashed in Antalya, killing 5 policemen. 
The cause of the crash was technical failure. 
Q Hundreds of representatives of the Kamu-Sen labor union threw eggs 
at the Israeli Embassy in Ankara to protest Israeli strikes against 
Lebanon and Palestine. 
Q The US Embassy in Ankara released a written statement saying that 
comments made by Ambassador Wilson in recent days have been 
misinterpreted. 
Q Prime Minister Erdogan urged the international community to remove 
unfair restrictions in Northern Cyprus 
 
International News 
 
Q US State Department Spokesman Sean McCormack said that the US 
would not support a cross-border operation by Turkey in Northern 
Iraq 
Q More Lebanese civilians died in Israeli air strikes 
 
  Visit Ankara's Classified Web Site at 
 
http://www.state.sgov.gov/p/eur/ankara/ 
 
WILSON