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UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 03 ANKARA 006560 
 
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, DECEMBER 1, 2006 
 
 
In Today's Papers 
 
Pope Benedict Wins Turkish Hearts in Landmark Visit 
All papers agree the visit by Pope Benedict XVI to Turkey was 
another gesture of reconciliation after the Pontiff infuriated the 
Muslim world with comments indicating he believed Islam was violent 
and irrational.  Mainstream Hurriyet says Pope Benedict visited 
Hagia Sophia as a tourist and in the Blue Mosque (Sultanahmet) 
turned toward Mecca and prayed.  The Vatican said it was a sign of 
respect.  "The Pope, who drew great sympathy with remarks of apology 
to Islam and his gestures to Turkey, continued to surprise the world 
yesterday," says the paper.  Mainstream Milliyet says at a time of 
rising tensions between religions, the Pope prayed together with a 
mufti at the Blue Mosque.  The Islamist-oriented Yeni Safak calls 
the Pope's prayer at the mosque "the moment history was written." 
Papers note the Blue Mosque in Istanbul is the second mosque ever 
entered by any Pope after Benedict's predecessor John Paul became 
the first Pope to visit a mosque in Damascus in 2001. 
 
Papers quote Istanbul's Grand Mufti Mustafa Cagrici as praising Pope 
Benedict, saying "Your two-day visit to Istanbul has produced an 
incredibly positive outcome for Turkey.  We thank you."  Cagrici 
said afterwards, "The Pope's visit and the messages he gave are 
creating great synergies for the dialogue between the two religions. 
 We are very happy about the visit." 
 
A joint declaration released following the meeting between Benedict 
and Bartholomew yesterday denounced the "scandalous" division in 
Christianity, restating their desire to overcome the 1054 Great 
Schism between the Roman Catholic and Greek Orthodox churches. 
Turkish papers say that in a "covert reference" to Turkey, the 
declaration said the EU should consider the possibility of taking in 
different cultures and religions while preserving its Christian 
roots, traditions and values. 
 
"Ecumenical crisis," reads a front-page headline in the 
leftist/nationalist Cumhuriyet, "Despite Ankara, Patriarch 
Bartholomew announced his claim to be ecumenical leader to the world 
in a joint statement released with the Pope.  Responding to press 
questions, Turkish Foreign Ministry (MFA) Spokesman Namik Tan said 
Turkey does not recognize or accept ecumenism, adding that Ankara's 
position concerning the matter was already known without elaborating 
further. 
 
All papers note that the Council of Europe Parliamentary Assembly 
has invited Bartholomew I, as "Ecumenical Patriarch," to delivr a 
speech at the Council of Europe on Januar 22. 
 
The Pope later held a mass at the VirginMary Church in Istanbul 
before meeting with the Patriarch of Turkish Armenians, Mesrob II. 
"A peaceful dialogue between Turkish and Armenian peoples is 
obligatory; it is our most important expectation," said Mesrob II. 
 
 
Despite fears of large demonstrations of nationalists and Islamists, 
only scattered protests broke out during the visit amid tight 
security in Istanbul.  On Friday, Pope Benedict will celebrate a 
mass at Istanbul's Cathedral of the Holy Spirit, which will be 
attended by Patriarch Bartholomew.  Following the mass, the Pontiff 
will fly back to Rome at midday. 
 
Cyprus Wants EU-Turkey Talks Suspended Altogether 
All papers anticipate "difficult days ahead with the EU" following a 
partial suspension of Turkey's accession talks earlier this week. EU 
term president Finland's Foreign Minister Erkki Tuomioja told 
Turkish reporters the proposal would probably be changed at the 
December 11 meeting, without elaborating further.  The Cypriot 
government, pressing for a tougher decision on Turkey, said "If we 
are not satisfied with the EU conclusions at the December 11 
meeting, we will not to permit the opening of chapters of Turkey's 
 
ANKARA 00006560  002 OF 003 
 
 
accession course."  Britain, Spain, Italy, Sweden and Estonia said 
the Greek Cypriot offer was unacceptable.  Swedish foreign minister 
said the European Commission's proposal to partially freeze talks 
with Turkey on eight chapters would cause great damage.  Britain and 
Spain have also warned against pressing Ankara too hard, while 
France, Germany and others want Turkey punished for its 
non-compliance with EU law. 
 
Milliyet reports sources in Washington said US continues its strong 
support for Turkey's EU process but that the problems have to be 
solved among Turkey and the EU since the US is not a member of the 
European bloc.  Turkish Foreign Ministry (MFA) Spokesman Namik Tan 
said Turkey was determined to continue ties with the EU, adding that 
Turkish positions might be reviewed in line with the outcome of the 
EU summit on December 14. 
 
Editorial Commentary on NATO Riga Summit 
Writing in the Islamist-opinion maker Yeni Safak, Koray Duzgoren 
warns that NATO is turning into the "global gendarme" for the West: 
"The decision at the Riga summit was very important for the future 
of the world, and somehow it was downplayed in the Turkish media 
possibly because of the Pope's visit, and the developments regarding 
Turkey and the EU.  The Riga summit proved that NATO is turning into 
the global gendarme for the West.  The mission in Afghanistan was 
the first out-of-area duty for NATO and, with the Riga summit, the 
global gendarme role for the Alliance has become official. 
Defenders of this role are arguing that the UN mechanism has not 
been efficient in coping with international problems, and they 
believe that the globalization of the NATO mission will be a good 
thing.  Should we believe this argument?  What happens if NATO turns 
into an international gendarme for protecting US and EU interests 
under the pretext of the fight against terror?  The ongoing 
discussion on whether to deploy NATO forces in Iraq gives enough 
indication.  The new role for NATO does not seem to be a good one. 
The world is need of peace and justice not new gendarmes." 
 
In the conservative Turkiye, Washington-based Hasan Mesut Hazar 
hails the globalization of NATO and Turkey's position in the 
organization:  "The NATO summit demonstrated that the alliance is 
now global.  The fight against terrorism has become the priority 
among the threats against NATO.  Other threats are listed as 
instability, regional conflicts and crisis as well as the expansion 
of conventional weapons.  The redefinition of threat analysis paves 
the way for new changes in the alliance, including the Rapid 
Reaction Force, to be operational in the future.  Turkey's role and 
importance in NATO is also growing along with this restructuring. 
Being the second largest army in NATO, Turkey seems to be the most 
valuable member.  Turkey agreed to contribute to the rapid reaction 
force with 300 soldiers.  The alliance of civilization project and 
its mention in the final declaration is another success for Turkey 
within NATO.  Following the announcement of the Iraqi Working Group 
report on Iraq, it is expected that both US policy in Iraq and the 
NATO mission will change accordingly." 
 
US Embassy: "PKK Terrorism Designation Unchanged" 
Hurriyet, Vatan, Radikal and others:  The US Embassy issued an 
announcement regarding the court ruling in California that there is 
no change in the US view that the PKK is a terrorist organization. 
Speaking at the weekly press briefing, MFA Spokesman Namik Tan said 
"it is an issue that has been brought on to the agenda within the 
framework of the unconstitutionality of a very comprehensive law." 
Radikal notes that Namik Tan said that the US Administration will 
appeal the Californian court decision. 
 
Supreme Military Council (YAS) Convenes 
All papers report that YAS convened under PM Erdogan yesterday. 
Military policies as well as modernization needs of the military 
were discussed.  Disciplinary files of the military personnel were 
reviewed.  The Council also announced that they had decided to expel 
37 officers, two of them for engaging in fundamentalist activities, 
 
ANKARA 00006560  003 OF 003 
 
 
from the military.    PM Erdogan and Defense Minister Vecdi Gonul 
noted their reservations to the expulsions under their signature, 
believing that the decision should be made in court.  President 
Sezer hosted a dinner in honor of Council members, but PM Erdogan 
did not attend the dinner. 
 
Five-Mile Limit for 'Dog Fights' in the Aegean 
Hurriyet reports that in order to avoid dog fights between Turkish 
and Greek war planes in the Aegean, Turkish and Greek military 
officials agreed the planes would keep five miles distance between 
each other.  Some terrible crashes occurred in the past due to 
planes flying as close as 200 meters to each other.  This agreement 
was described as the most positive result of TGS Chief General 
Buyukanit's visit to Greece on November 1-4. 
 
TV Highlights 
NTV (6 a.m.) 
 
Domestic News 
 
- Tight security "paralyzed" Istanbul traffic Thursday during Pope 
Benedict's visit to Turkeys' largest city. 
 
- CHP deputy chairman Onur Oymen slammed the EU for using threats to 
get concessions from Turkey before the upcoming summit in December. 
 
 
- Turkish Health Ministry declared 2,412 AIDS and/or HIV-positive 
cases have been recorded in Turkey since 1985, most of which are 
people aged between 30-34, with the majority of the infections 
resulting from heterosexual intercourse.  Most AIDS/HIV patients 
live in the major Turkish cities Istanbul, Izmir, and Ankara. 
 
- Foreign Minister Abdullah Gul will host a luncheon Friday for 
ambassadors of the EU countries in Ankara to mark the end of 
Finland's EU term presidency. 
 
- Turkish Parliament's budget commission has approved the 2007 
budget draft. 
 
International News 
 
- EU Enlargement Commissioner Olli Rehn said Croatia could join the 
EU before 2010. 
 
- Prime Minister Erdogan is to visit Iran on Saturday to discuss 
with President Ahmedinejad and religious leader Khamenei Iraq and 
Tehran's nuclear activities. 
 
- The appeals chamber of the UN war crimes court handed down an 
unprecedented life sentence for Bosnian Serb general Stanislav 
Galic. 
 
  Visit Ankara's Classified Web Site at 
 
http://www.state.sgov.gov/p/eur/ankara/ 
 
WILSON