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UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 ANKARA 000908 
 
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 
TUESDAY, APRIL 17, 2007 
 
 
In Today's Papers 
 
Speculation on Presidency Continues 
All papers continue speculating as to whether Prime Minister Erdogan 
will run for the presidency.  On Tuesday, Erdogan will meet with 
opposition leaders Erkan Mumcu of Anavatan and Mehmet Agar of DYP. 
The leftist-nationalist Cumhuriyet claims Erdogan aims at securing 
367 votes for the presidential elections, a number the main 
opposition CHP claims is required by the constitution to launch the 
first two rounds of voting in the parliament.  Erdogan said so far 
he met with 300 AKP lawmakers, who, he said, expressed support for 
any decision the PM will make.  Most papers believe Erdogan will 
announce his candidacy on April 25, the last day for presidential 
nominations.  Cumhuriyet says following the rally of hundreds of 
thousands in Ankara over the weekend, now secular Turks were 
preparing to voice new protests message against Erdogan during 
celebrations planned for April 23, Sovereignty Day, and May 1, Labor 
Day.  Abdullatif Sener, AKP deputy chairman, struck a different note 
than his party line yesterday, stressing that the opinion of the 
thousands who have rallied against the PM's presidential aspirations 
should be taken into consideration. 
 
DYP-Anavatan Consider Unity before Parliamentary Elections 
Commentaries in mainstream dailies Milliyet and Vatan claim 
center-right opposition parties DYP and Anavatan have been holding 
"secret" talks on unification before the parliamentary elections in 
November.  Former President Suleyman Demirel and former Prime 
Minister Mesut Yilmaz have convinced the two party leaders, Mehmet 
Agar and Erkan Mumcu, to merge their parties.  Milliyet says some 
groups in Turkey demanding democracy, a market economy and civic 
liberties might opt for the new formation instead of traditionally 
supporting the main opposition CHP.  DYP has a voter support of 
around 10 percent while Anavatan is predicted to get 5 percent of 
the votes. 
 
Erdogan Meets Merkel in Hanover 
All papers report Prime Minister Erdogan met with German Chancellor 
Angela Merkel at the Hanover industrial fair.  In a joint press 
conference with Erdogan, Merkel said Turkey and Europe have to move 
closer together.  "The entire membership process is a long and 
open-ended one," Merkel said. Erdogan thanked Merkel for "boosting" 
Turkey's entry negotiations during the German EU presidency, 
expressing Turkey's expectations of having more chapters opened 
during Germany's mandate which will expire at the end of June. 
Erdogan invited Merkel to Turkey, but did not respond to questions 
from the Turkish journalists on whether he will host Merkel as the 
prime minister or president. 
 
Meanwhile, Erdogan reportedly presented to Berlin a file on the 
outlawed PKK's financial sources and its ties with media as well as 
a list of the terror organization members in Germany.  Turkey is 
expected to ask Germany for the extradition of PKK members, say 
papers. 
 
Karzai-Musharraf to Meet in Turkey 
Mainstream Hurriyet reports the presidents of Afghanistan and 
Pakistan, Pervez Musharraf and Hamid Karzai, are scheduled to meet 
in Ankara on April 29 to reduce tensions between the two countries 
on fighting Taliban.  Karzai accuses Pakistan of sheltering Taliban 
militants as well as allowing border infiltrations.  Turkish 
officials will join the meeting as well.  A spokesman for the 
Pakistani Foreign Ministry said the offer to host the meeting came 
from Ankara. 
 
12 Terrorists, 1 Soldier Killed in Clashes 
All papers report one Turkish soldier and 12 terrorists were killed 
in a clash in the eastern province of Tunceli during a military 
offensive against the outlawed PKK.  Security officials predict 
there are around 350 PKK militants in the province. 
 
 
ANKARA 00000908  002 OF 002 
 
 
Editorial Commentary: Iraq 
Ilter Turkmen writes in the mainstream daily Hurriyet:  "From the 
perspective of international law, Turkey might have three options 
regarding an intervention: hot pursuit, humanitarian intervention 
and legitimate defense.  Hot pursuit requires a bilateral agreement 
with Iraq.  We used to have such an agreement, but not any more. 
Regarding humanitarian intervention, there is still a need for 
definition.  By using widely accepted criteria, we can, for 
instance, claim a right to intervene if a massacre is carried out 
against the Turkmen population.  As for legitimate defense, which is 
defined by UN Convention (Article 51), Turkey has to inform the UNSC 
before an operation and describe the measures that it plans to take. 
 However the previous rulings by the International Court of Justice 
on similar issues indicate that there may not be an automatic grant 
of such a right to Turkey.  Besides as proven by history, 
asymmetrical clashes can be very difficult for even for the 
strongest armed forces.  Turkey's cross-border operation would 
probably not be an absolute success due to many reasons, such as the 
fact that PKK terrorists are spread all around Northern Iraq and the 
reactions from US and EU.  An operation into Northern Iraq requires 
a solid political ground and calls for rapid military action. 
Otherwise it would harm Turkey more than it would help. 
 
TV Highlights 
NTV, 7.00 A.M. 
 
Domestic News 
 
- The Education Ministry has initiated investigation in connection 
with a traffic accident on the Aksaray-Konya highway that killed 32, 
most of them primary school students. 
 
- Four people have been killed and five others have been injured in 
a traffic accident in the southeastern province of Adiyaman. 
 
- Ceremonies will be held Tuesday to commemorate late president 
Turgut Ozal on the 14th anniversary of his death. 
 
- Deputy Parliament Speaker Ali Dincer remains in critical condition 
at a hospital in Ankara after cancer treatment and a kidney 
transplant last December. 
 
International News 
 
- At least 22 people were killed Monday, some of them students, 
during a shooting at Virginia Tech University. 
 
- Radical Shiite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr ordered his ministers to 
quit Iraq's government on Monday in protest against Prime Minister 
al-Maliki's refusal to set a timetable for US troops to withdraw. 
 
- Le Monde reported Monday French secret services knew before 9/11 
al-Qaeda planned to hijack an aircraft in the US. 
 
- Europe does not need a constitution, British Prime Minister Tony 
Blair said, but should opt for a less ambitious new treaty that 
would not require a referendum. 
 
WILSON