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Tim W Hayes  03/02/2007 04:17:09 PM  From  DB/Inbox:  Tim W Hayes

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C O N F I D E N T I A L        ANKARA 00319

SIPDIS
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    ACTION: POL
    INFO:   CONS TSR PMA ECON DCM AMB RAO FCS PA MGT DAO

DISSEMINATION: POL /1
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APPROVED: AMB:RWILSON
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CLEARED: POL:JWEINER, KDEGNAN, DCM:NM

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C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 ANKARA 000319 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL: 02/05/2027 
TAGS: PGOV PREL TU
SUBJECT: TURKEY: NATIONALIST PEOPLE'S PARTY CHAIRMAN DEVLET BAHCELI: NATIONALISM FOR ALL TURKS 
 
Classified By: Ambassador Ross Wilson for Reasons 1.4 (b, d) 
 
¶1. (C)  SUMMARY: On February 5, Nationalist People's Party 
(MHP) Chairman Devlet Bahceli outlined to Ambassador the 
party's priorities for the coming election year.  His candor 
was hampered by an adherence to the party's declared goal of 
becoming the sole governing party after the general 
elections, currently scheduled for November 4, 2007.  Bahceli 
indicated that MHP sees itself as a party with broader vote 
potential than in the past.  He suggested that Turkey needs 
to change the terms of its relationship with the European 
Union (EU), said the MHP is no fascist party, and demanded a 
firm stance from the US on the Armenian genocide resolution. 
The 59-year old soft-spoken leader of the ultra-right party 
known for its thuggish history appeared frail and 
increasingly elderly, but his ability to direct the party may 
be stronger than in the past. END SUMMARY. 
 
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The Meeting: Turkey First, Last, and Always 
------------------------------------------- 
 
¶2. (C) Emphasizing that the MHP is open to and can address 
the needs of all Turkish people (in a "multinational 
representational democracy"), Bahceli named Turkey's top 
three issues as separatist terrorist activities, efforts to 
make northern Iraq independent, and Cyprus.  On Iraq, he 
claimed the US is finding a solution to "satisfy its own 
public," but said that Turkey could not accept a structure 
out of line with the historical development of the region. 
The Turkmen should not be ignored. 
 
¶3. (C) On the EU, he argued that Turkey has been fulfilling 
its obligations but the EU continues to obstruct progress. 
MHP wants the accession process to be dignified, but it is 
not dignified for Turkey.  The government should revise the 
Turkey-EU relationship to be open, frank, and honest.  When 
asked where the EU fits in MHP's priorities, Bahceli 
explained that the first priority was Turkey, its 
nation-state structure, and its territorial integrity.  If 
the EU poses a threat to Turkey, then "we have to revise our 
policies." 
 
¶4. (C) Cyprus is a national matter for Turkey, Bahceli 
explained.  The MHP seeks a permanent bi-communal situation 
with political equality.  The EU is trying to implement a 
Greek policy and Turkey cannot accept this.  The EU made a 
fundamental mistake by accepting Greek Cyprus as a member 
before the Cyprus problem was resolved.  He observed that 
some EU states were trying to promote their own foreign 
policy independently or as part of ad hoc coalitions and 
wondered whether the EU would undergo a disintegration 
process similar to that of the USSR. 
 
¶5. (C) Bahceli explained that both domestic and regional 
issues are intertwined; when Turks talk about "southeastern 
issues," northern Iraq and Kirkuk are mixed in.  When they 
talk about the terrorist Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK), the 
US is involved in that, too.  After having discussed freely a 
number of foreign policy issues, Bahceli deflected a question 
about Turkey's relations with the east.  He testily asserted 
that it would not be right to discuss Turkish foreign policy 
issues with the ambassador of a foreign government.  (This 
nationalistic stance was promptly to the press by MHP 
figures.)  Bahceli did observe, however, that he has been to 
the United States nine times and to Iran only twice -- as if 
this were statement enough about his priorities. 
 
¶6. (C) Bahceli showed a little life when asked about the 
post-Hrant Dink patriotism/nationalism debates in Turkey.  He 
claimed that such debates were an attempt to steer people 
away from truths.  The policies MHP defends were defined 150 
years ago.  What MHP believes has nothing to do with Nazism 
or fascism.  "Are we that stupid to follow such policies?" 
People who have "nothing to do with nationalism" simply 
cannot understand it, he concluded. 
 
¶7. (C) The Armenian genocide resolution in the US House of 
Representatives is very upsetting for Turkey, Bahceli said. 
MHP expects a firm stance from the US.  As for the US Special 
Envoy for Combating the PKK, Bahceli demanded to know why the 
US insists on establishing a relationship with a third party: 
"Are you trying to make us sit at the table with the PKK?" 
The argument that Turkey's counterpart is Iraq is not 
convincing; the US is the one with the power in Iraq. 
Therefore, we need to find a solution with two allies, 
between two friends.  We need no tool between us, he argued, 
because there is no government in Iraq. 
 
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Comment 
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¶8. (C) MHP is trying to become a more mainstream party, 
though it is as yet far from clear that the party will 
surmount the 10 percent hurdle to make it into the next 
parliament.  Bahceli confidante Riza Ayhan explained that 
this has been Bahceli's aim all along; he is only now getting 
the extreme elements of the party under control (or out) 
enough to achieve this goal.  MHP is a long way from 
inspiring confidence that Turkey's minority or dissenting 
citizens would be safe under its care.  In an echo of its 
violent past, the sign at the door of MHP headquarters 
("Please leave your weapons at the desk") reminds that among 
MHP-types, packing heat is still an accepted characteristic 
for practitioners of democratic politics.  End Comment. 
 
Visit Ankara's Classified Web Site at 
http://www.state.sgov.gov/p/eur/ankara/ 
 
WILSON