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UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 03 ANKARA 000978 
 
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, APRIL 26, 2007 
 
 
In Today's Papers 
 
Turkish Presidential Debates 
All papers continue reporting and speculation on whether the AKP 
government can persuade enough lawmakers to participate in the first 
round of voting of the presidential election in parliament set for 
Friday.  The main opposition CHP has already announced they will 
boycott the voting and threatened to apply to the Constitutional 
Court to rule the election invalid if less than two thirds of the 
550 lawmakers (367) are in the parliament for the first round.  The 
only presidential nominee, Foreign Minister Abdullah Gul, needs the 
support of 14 MPs outside AKP to secure the presence of 367 deputies 
in the first round.  The AKP maintains that only 184 deputies need 
be present to hold the first round of voting. Asked yesterday by 
reporters what would happen in case the high court annuls the first 
vote, Gul said early parliamentary elections will be called. 
Opposition parties Anavatan and DYP urged the AKP to put off the 
presidential election and call early general elections instead. 
Vatan says the two parties have decided not to participate in the 
voting unless the government calls for early polls.  Prime Minister 
Erdogan ruled out postponing the presidential vote and the calls for 
early elections. 
 
Gul said following his contacts with the independent MPs in the 
parliament that he will be true to the values of the secular 
republic in deeds as well as in words.  Gul stressed he has three 
aims, "a strong democracy, a strong economy and a strong army in 
Turkey." 
 
Turkey's influential business gathering TUSIAD and labor union 
Turk-Is have welcomed Gul's candidacy.  The Turkish stock exchanges 
reacted positively to the nomination of Gul.  Economic/political 
daily Dunya says up to USD 25 billion could come to Turkey in 2007 
if the presidential election process is completed smoothly. 
 
Editorial Commentary on Presidential Process 
Cuneyt Ulsever writes in the mainstream Hurriyet: "The presidential 
election process proved that the key players of Turkey not only 
failed to observe democratic rules but also that they demonstrated a 
serious lack of vision.  Neither the ruling AKP, nor the main 
opposition CHP has a vision.  AKP voters should be upset because 
they are shaping policy depending on the circumstance, rather than a 
solid party strategy.  As for the secular masses, they should be 
upset too due to the fact that a staunch advocate of the headscarf 
is about to occupy presidency.  Turkey seems to be a country of 
people with no vision." 
 
Fehmi Koru comments in the Islamist-oriented Yeni Safak: "If the CHP 
takes the presidential election issue to the Constitutional Court, 
Turkey, no matter what, will end up in a crisis.  Interestingly 
enough, the opposition circles prefer to put the country into a 
crisis rather than support a moderate figure for the presidency.  It 
just does not make sense that Turkey's main opposition party would 
boycott the voting session for the presidency and advocate for a 
crisis.  But this is politics after all; politicians are known to 
act in a suicidal fashion from time to time.  The parliamentary 
session tomorrow is very critical." 
 
Larijani-Solana Meet in Ankara 
All papers report EU Foreign Policy Chief Javier Solana and Iranian 
Chief Nuclear Negotiator Ali Larijani came together in Ankara to 
discuss Tehran's nuclear program.  Larijani and Solana said they 
held "positive" discussions, adding they plan to meet again within 
two weeks.  Before the Larijani-Solana meeting, Prime Minister 
Erdogan came together at lunch with Larijani who is scheduled to 
meet with Turkish National Security Council (MGK) Secretary-General 
Yigit Alpogan on Thursday.  Sabah reports President Bush said 
Secretary Rice and the Iranian FM might hold bilateral talks at the 
 
SIPDIS 
upcoming Iraq neighbors conference in Egypt. 
 
 
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Editorial Commentary on Turkey's Diplomacy 
Sami Kohen observes in the mainstream Milliyet: "Turkish diplomacy 
succeeded in making three important meetings happen in Ankara. 
Iranian representative Larijani started a series of meetings with 
the EU official Solana.  The Iraqi Foreign Minister is also arriving 
in Ankara for discussions about the upcoming Iraqi conference in 
Egypt.  And, the leaders of Afghanistan and Pakistan are expected to 
meet in Ankara next Monday.  These meetings are the clear indication 
that Turkey is a regional actor in diplomacy.  Iran-EU talks 
occurred when the nuclear issue seemed to be frozen due to 
uncompromising statements of Iran.  Despite this fact, the 
Larijani-Solana meeting has the potential to initiate a new 
negotiation process.  As for the upcoming Iraqi conference, the 
Iraqi Foreign Minister is apparently planning to conquer Ankara's 
heart after the disappointment over the fact that Iraq did not want 
Turkey to be the host for this conference.  If the Egypt conference 
produces some progress, a new phase might begin and Turkey can be 
the host for the next conference." 
 
Assassination Attempt on Education Board Chairman 
All papers report a gunman attempted to enter the office of 
Professor Erdogan Tezic chairman of Turkey's secularist Higher 
Education Board (YOK) on Wednesday, in an attempt to assassinate 
him.  When he was prevented from entering the building, the gunman 
fired three shots at the security guards and fled.  The assailant, 
Nurullah Ilgun, was captured in a bus station a few hours later. 
Mainstream Hurriyet reports Ilgun was a supporter of the 
nationalist-Islamist party BBP, adding his sister, wearing the 
Islamic-style headscarf, had problems in university. 
 
The attempted attack comes a day after the ruling AKP announced 
Foreign Minister Abdullah Gul as their presidential candidate. 
Tezic has been highly critical of the ruling AK Party's policies and 
opposed Erdogan seeking the presidency. 
 
MFA on Bush's Armenian Remembrance Day Message 
Radikal and Cumhuriyet report the Turkish Foreign Ministry (MFA) 
said in a statement it was "impossible to agree with certain points 
in the statement" of President Bush on April 24 Armenian Remembrance 
Day message.  The MFA statement, however, noted "President Bush 
emphasized that an open study of the historical events of the last 
period of the Ottoman Empire will help the normalization of 
relations between Turkey and Armenia.  We agree with President Bush 
on this matter, and expect that the US President and the 
Administration will continue to encourage Armenia to give a positive 
response to our historic offer." 
 
TV Highlights 
NTV, 6.00 A.M. 
 
Domestic News 
 
- A cabinet reshuffle is expected in Ankara following presidential 
elections.  Foreign Minister Gul is to be replaced by State Minister 
Ali Babacan whose post will be given to AKP deputy chairmen Reha 
Denemec or Nazim Ekren. 
 
- 400 NGOs back a rally planned in Istanbul on Sunday to voice 
support for the basic values of the republic. 
 
- Police detained Wednesday in Istanbul six members of the PKK, 
including a blind woman, seizing more than 6.7 kg of plastic 
explosives and a bomb vest with a detonator on it.  The terrorists 
were reportedly preparing for a "sensational" bomb attack. 
 
- President Sezer will host talks between Pakistan and Afghan 
presidents Musharraf and Karzai on April 29-30 to cool tensions over 
cross-border militancy in Afghanistan. 
 
International News 
 
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- The Turkish Jewish congregation and four other leading Jewish 
organizations in the US have sent a letter to the US Congress urging 
postponing Armenian genocide debates. 
 
- A UN report said journalists in Iraq's Kurdistan face arrest and 
harassment over reporting on government corruption and poor public 
services. 
 
- Radical Shiite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr called for demonstrations 
against the wall around a Sunni neighborhood in Baghdad, saying it 
displayed the "evil intentions" of American "occupiers." 
 
 - A senior US intelligence official said Fidel Castro's health is 
improving and the 80-year-old leader is likely to take full command 
again. 
 
WILSON