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UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 03 ANKARA 002167 
 
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, AUGUST 21, 2007 
 
 
In Today's Papers 
 
Gul Fails to Receive Enough Votes for President; Second Round Set 
for August 24 
All papers report that on Monday, Foreign Minister Abdullah Gul won 
341 votes in the first round of the presidential election in the 
parliament, short of the 367 needed to become president.  The 
opposition CHP boycotted yesterday's voting, but the required quorum 
of 367 was achieved when the MHP decided to take part in the 
parliament.  The leader of the far-right party BBP Muhsin Yazicioglu 
and an independent MP voted for Gul.  MHP candidate Sabahattin 
Cakmakoglu won 70 votes, and DSP candidate Tayfun Icli 13 votes.  A 
second round of voting has been set for August 24 when 367 votes are 
required again; but in the third round to be held August 28, Gul is 
expected to win as only a simple majority (276 votes) will suffice 
to elect the new president. 
 
Baykal won't Debate 'Legitimacy' of Presidential Election 
Hurriyet, Milliyet, Radikal, and Cumhuriyet report CHP leader Deniz 
Baykal defended his party's boycotting of the voting, saying the CHP 
did not want to take responsibility for the process of making Turkey 
a "moderate Islamic country." "The danger is clear, we are creating 
a monster in the laboratory," Baykal said.  Baykal, however, also 
noted that since the election was held under constitutional rules, 
the CHP would not question its legitimacy if Gul is elected 
president.  "CHP has made no attempts outside democracy, such as 
expecting an intervention from the military.  Our secular republic 
of 80 years has begun to go backward in the last 15 years, and this 
change will speed up after the election of a president," Baykal 
said. 
 
Leftist ODP leader Ufuk Uras said the CHP decision to boycott the 
presidential elections was "childish and undemocratic."  Kurdish DTP 
deputies left their ballots blank, declining to vote for Gul, saying 
they did not receive clear messages from him with regard to the 
Kurdish issue. 
 
Editorial Commentary on Gul as President 
Gungor Mengi writes in the mainstream daily Vatan: "Presidential 
candidate Gul is making some interesting remarks during his meetings 
to garner support.  He promises to represent everybody.  Something 
is wrong with this approach.  The President of Turkey cannot be 
impartial between those who are loyal to the secular republic and 
those who work for an Islamist fundamentalist system.  Given his 
background related to the use of the headscarf as a political 
symbol, it will be very interesting to see to what extent he can be 
neutral on this matter.  He will undoubtedly go through a 
challenging period in the presidential seat because of mounting 
prejudices against him based on his past record.  In any case, we 
should give him credit and a helping hand to prevent him from 
falling into the hands of extremists." 
 
Oktay Eksi writes in the mainstream daily Hurriyet: "Electing a 
president is now only a formality.  Once the process is concluded 
Gul will be the new president.  He should consider himself the 
leader of 70 million people, just like a conductor of a giant 
orchestra.  His success depends on his skill at comprehending the 
laws and regulations well and using the state instruments fairly. 
If he favors one or two parts of society rather than the entire 
people, he will be held accountable by history.  Gul is moving 
toward a challenging period.  During his term, whether the modern 
Turkish Republic will be at stake or not is the main question. 
There might be signs of compromise in the nature of his political 
past, but we just don't remember any record of his good governance 
when critical times emerged.  Time will reveal the truth." 
 
Turkey-Iran Electricity Deal 
All papers report Energy Minister Hilmi Guler told the press Monday 
on his return from Tehran that Turkey has signed a deal with Iran to 
import an annual 3-6 billion kilowatt hours of electricity from the 
 
ANKARA 00002167  002 OF 003 
 
 
Islamic Republic.  "Technical teams from both countries are still 
meeting regarding the construction of these lines to be completed 
within one year," Guler said, adding that the deal also included 
plans for Turkey's private sector to construct a 10,000 megawatt 
hydroelectric power plant.  Officials said three power plants will 
be built in both countries which would have a total capacity of 
6,000 mw.  They noted that in July, Turkey and Iran signed a 
memorandum of understanding for USD 3.5 billion worth of Turkish 
investment in Iran's South Pars gas field.  The deal will turn Iran 
into a transport country for Turkmen gas to flow to Turkey. 
Leftist-nationalist Cumhuriyet says the deal signed with Iran, "a 
new Blue Stream agreement," would not allow Turkey to sell natural 
gas to third countries. 
 
Bryza Rejects Ambassadorial Assignment in Greek Cyprus 
Hurriyet, Milliyet, Cumhuriyet and Posta:  Papers report that State 
Department Deputy Assistant Secretary Matthew Bryza will be getting 
married to Hudson Institute's Zeyno Baran this Thursday in Istanbul. 
 Reportedly, the State Department offered DAS Bryza the 
Ambassadorial position in Nicosia.  However, Bryza rejected the 
assignment with a concern that Greek-Cypriots could react negatively 
to his being married to a Turk.  Tabloid Posta headlines "He Prefers 
Love."  Mainstream Milliyet reports that on their wedding 
invitation, the Bryza-Baran couple stressed that presents should not 
be sent to the wedding; instead, money should be donated to 
Milliyet's "Dad, Send me to School" campaign for the education of 
disadvantaged children, mainly girls, in Turkey. 
 
Democratic Presidential Candidates in the US Debate Turkey's Role in 
Iraq 
Star, Hurriyet, Milliyet, Sabah:  Papers report that during a 
presidential debate in Iowa on Sunday, leading Democratic 
presidential candidates did not agree on how Turkey would react in 
case of an early US troop withdrawal from Iraq.  New York Senator 
Hilary Clinton said that "Turkey would not allow US troops to go 
through their territory in case of a pull out, as they did not allow 
the troops to enter Iraq through Turkey."  New Mexico Governor Bill 
Richardson disagreed with Clinton and proposed an all-Muslim force 
in Iraq, including Turks, and an early withdrawal.  Senate's Foreign 
Relations Committee Chairman Joseph Biden resisted Richardson's call 
for an early withdrawal and said "If we leave Iraq in chaos, there 
will be a regional war.  It will bring, Saudis, Iranians and Turks 
into Iraq." Biden reiterated his earlier proposal to divide Iraq 
into three autonomous zones for Shiites, Sunnis and Kurds.  Illinois 
Senator Barack Obama said that he generally agreed with Biden's 
proposal but this should be done by the Iraqis rather than as 
something imposed by the US. 
 
TV Highlights 
NTV, 7.00 A.M. 
 
Domestic News 
 
- President Sezer has toured key state institutions to bid farewell 
before handing over his post to the new president. 
 
- Alevi writer and AKP MP Reha Camuroglu and pro-Kurdish DTP leader 
Ahmet Turk called for the sacking of Yusuf Halacoglu, chairman of 
Turkish History Institution, for saying Kurds in Turkey were of 
Turkmen and Alevis of Armenian origin. 
 
- The third round of collective bargaining talks between the 
government and public servants' labor unions is to be held 
Wednesday. 
 
- The Capital Markets Board said Turkey survived the recent global 
economic turmoil with minimal losses. 
 
International News 
 
 
ANKARA 00002167  003 OF 003 
 
 
- French Foreign Minister Bernard Kouchner has arrived in Baghdad 
for a three day visit at the invitation of President Talabani. 
 
- The radical Shiite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr said the British army 
has been defeated in Iraq and is left with no option but to retreat 
from the country. 
 
- The Guardian said the PKK-affiliated PJAK was "the fastest growing 
armed resistance group in Iran." 
 
- Climate change campaigners clashed Monday with riot police at 
Heathrow during a demonstration to protest against plans for a third 
runway at one of Europe's busiest airports. 
 
MCELDOWNEY