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UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 03 ANKARA 000541 
 
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, MARCH 9, 2007 
 
 
In Today's Papers 
 
Secret Military Memorandum on Media Stirs Debate 
 
SIPDIS 
All papers report the Turkish General Staff (TGS) said on Thursday 
it had launched an investigation into the leak to the press of a 
classified memorandum that shows the military keeps a close watch on 
newspapers and denies accreditation to columnists whose views it 
dislikes.  Mainstream papers and columnists strongly criticized the 
TGS, warning against efforts to take Turkey "back to 1997."  Several 
papers recall that in 1998, the TGS planted false stories in the 
media to defame two famous columnists and the head of a human rights 
organization. 
 
Leftist/nationalist Cumhuriyet points out that other state offices 
do similar evaluations, pointing to the Prime Ministry's press 
office regular assessment of journalists' positions on the ruling 
AKP government and even journalists' behavior on foreign trips with 
the PM.  Mainstream Sabah's chief editor Fatih Altayli says another 
document containing the military's assessment of Islamic media was 
not leaked, therefore, says Altayli, the TGS views the partial leak 
as an attempt to stoke tensions between liberal media and the 
military. 
 
AKP Withdraws 'Foreign Doctors Bill' 
All papers report the ruling AKP government pulled back a draft bill 
on employment of foreign doctors in Turkey.  The Turkish 
parliamentary commission on health and social affairs removed five 
provisions earlier vetoed by President Sezer from the bill.  Papers 
expect the bill to be submitted with changes for the approval of a 
new president after April. 
 
Security of Kurdish Politicians Enhanced 
Intellectual/Islamist-oriented Zaman reports Turkish police have 
stepped up protection for Kurdish party DTP head Ahmet Turk and 
Diyarbakir Mayor Osman Baydemir amid fears they may be assassinated 
by Turkish nationalists seeking to ignite ethnic conflicts between 
Turks and Kurds in the country. 
 
Increased US Influence in the Southeast 
Sabah, Radikal, Hurriyet, Yeni Safak and others:  CHP Izmir deputy 
Oguz Oyan claimed at a press conference yesterday that during a 
recent visit to the southeast he noticed that the US has been trying 
to increase its influence in the region.  Oyan added that the US had 
even interfered indirectly in the elections of one province's Bar 
Association. 
 
Iraq Conference 
Radikal, Milliyet, Cumhuriyet:  Foreign Ministry Spokesman Levent 
Bilman stressed yesterday that following a meeting in Baghdad this 
weekend, Iraq's neighbors were expected to send their Foreign 
Ministers to Cairo and then to meet in Istanbul along with 
representatives from P5 and G-8 countries.  Bilman noted that the 
exact date of the Istanbul meeting and the level of representation 
have not been set yet.  Milliyet cites the Washington Post Jim 
Hoagland op-ed saying that "US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice 
has persuaded Turkey to host a ministerial conference next month 
that will include Iraq's neighbors, the permanent members of the UN 
and G-8 countries."  Milliyet Washington correspondent Yasemin 
Congar highlights the fact that this was Turkish FM Gul's 
initiative, proposed to Rice by Gul during his last US visit. 
 
Editorial Commentary on Iraq, Kosovo 
Tamer Korkmaz observes in the intellectual Islamist-oriented Zaman: 
"President Bush's new Iraq plan has practically collapsed before it 
has even been fully implemented.  Even though he continues to claim 
victory, there is the basic fact of the blood of around 700,000 
civilian dead bodies.  It seems the new Iraq strategy was an attempt 
to create an illusion for a safe pull-out for American troops.  The 
US does not intend to reverse the course of negative events in Iraq, 
and obviously hopes to achieve a full-scale withdrawal by the end of 
 
ANKARA 00000541  002 OF 003 
 
 
July 2007." 
 
Sami Kohen comments in the mainstream daily Milliyet:  "The UN plan 
for Kosovo will soon be presented to Kosovar and Serbian leaders and 
later will be discussed at the UN Security Council.  However, the 
paths toward peace still seem tough and thorny.  Serbians are 
rejecting the plan while Albanians call it inadequate.  Western 
nations support the plan while Russia opposes it.  If the coming 
days provide some sort of consensus over the UN plan, and if the 
UNSC manages to approve it in final form, the Balkans will have an 
interesting model of 'Balkanization' of their geography.  On the 
other hand, a disagreement on the future of Kosovo will pave the way 
for instability in the region with radical movements gaining 
influence and civil war style provocations becoming more likely. 
Therefore, to ensure a successful passage the international 
community is working hard to fine tune the UN plan.  This Kosovo 
example may be even a model for the Cyprus issue." 
 
TV Highlights 
NTV (6 a.m.) 
 
Domestic News 
 
- World media attention has been drawn to continued curbs on freedom 
of expression in Turkey after Turk Telekom blocked access to YouTube 
because of videos deemed insulting to Kemal Ataturk.  Turkish 
officials said the offending video is still on YouTube and, 
therefore, the ban will continue. 
 
- In a meeting with Turkish Parliament Speaker Bulent Arinc, the 
chairwoman of Turkey's influential business group TUSIAD, Arzuhan 
Yalcindag, expressed concern over a recent barring from parliament 
of women wearing hats. 
 
- In the southeastern township of Cizre, 31 women have been arrested 
for participating in outlawed protests in support of the PKK's 
imprisoned leader Abdullah Ocalan. 
 
- An Ankara prosecutor has launched an investigation against CHP MP 
Esat Canan for calling terrorists "martyrs of the southeast" at a 
meeting with Joseph Ralston in the US Embassy last month. 
 
- The government will inject 3 billion YTL into the Turkish Atomic 
Institution for the construction of a nuclear power plant. 
 
International News 
 
- Illinois Democratic Senator Richard Durbin announced plans to 
introduce in the US Senate a resolution on Armenian genocide.  It is 
expected to be slightly different than the resolution introduced in 
the House. 
 
- The Cyprus government tore down a wall at the end of the 
buffer-zone Ledra Street in the divided city of Nicosia.  Government 
spokesman Pasiardes stressed the demolition does not mean opening of 
the crossing point to and from the Turkish side.  Turkish Cypriots 
removed the Lokmaci footbridge on their side in January. 
 
- EU Enlargement Commissioner Olli Rehn said he sees no reason to 
expect military intervention in the democratic process of 
presidential elections in Turkey. 
 
- Russia will enter the bidding for procurement of four long-range 
missile defense systems for Turkey with its S-300 missile. 
 
- About 1.5 million Shiite pilgrims have arrived in the holy Iraqi 
city of Karbala despite fears of fresh bomb attacks. 
 
http://www.state.sgov.gov/p/eur/ankara/ 
 
 
ANKARA 00000541  003 OF 003 
 
 
WILSON