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Viewing cable 07ANKARA2315, ANKARA MEDIA REACTION REPORT

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Reference ID Created Released Classification Origin
07ANKARA2315 2007-09-11 13:19 2011-08-24 01:00 UNCLASSIFIED Embassy Ankara
VZCZCXRO3993
OO RUEHDA
DE RUEHAK #2315/01 2541319
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
O 111319Z SEP 07
FM AMEMBASSY ANKARA
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC IMMEDIATE 3704
RUEKJCS/CJCS WASHDC IMMEDIATE
RUEKJCS/SECDEF WASHDC IMMEDIATE
RUEKJCS/OSD WASHDC//PA
RUEUITH/ODC ANKARA TU
INFO RUEHTH/AMEMBASSY ATHENS 8354
RUEHIT/AMCONSUL ISTANBUL 3285
RUEHDA/AMCONSUL ADANA 2292
RUEHBS/AMEMBASSY BRUSSELS 6130
RUEHBS/USEU BRUSSELS
RUEHNO/USMISSION USNATO 5935
RUCNDT/USMISSION USUN NEW YORK 2529
RUEUITH/DET 1 39LG ANKARA TU
RHMFIUU/USDOCO 6ATAF IZMIR TU
RHMFIUU/39OS INCIRLIK AB TU
RHMFIUU/AFOSI DET 523 IZMIR TU
RHMFIUU/39ABG INCIRLIK AB TU
RHMFIUU/AFOSI DET 522 INCIRLIK AB TU
RUEUITH/AFLO ANKARA TU
UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 03 ANKARA 002315 
 
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, SEPTEMBER 11, 2007 
 
 
In Today's Papers 
 
General Buyukanit Calls on President Gul 
All papers report Chief of the Turkish General Staff General Yasar 
Buyukanit has paid a visit to the newly elected President Abdullah 
Gul to offer his congratulations.  Yesterday's gathering was their 
first private meeting since the former foreign minister was elected 
president by parliament on August 28.  In moves viewed as snubs to 
Gul, Buyukanit and the army commanders had not participated in any 
of the receptions the newly elected president has hosted. 
 
President Gul to Tour East, Southeast Turkey 
Papers report that on Tuesday, President Abdullah Gul is to travel 
to the eastern province of Van on his first domestic visit.  Gul 
will move on from Van to the mainly Kurdish southeastern provinces 
of Hakkari, Sirnak, Siirt and Diyarbakir where he will meet with 
local authorities as well as NGOs and human rights activists.  The 
President will also meet with the pro-Kurdish DTP mayors to seek 
ways to resolve social and economic problems in the region. 
 
Paper: US Meeting with PKK in Northern Iraq 
Vatan, Cumhuriyet, Zaman and Yeni Safak carry a Daily Telegraph 
story which claims "US military helicopters are reportedly used to 
shuttle officers to regular meetings with PKK terrorists in Kandil 
Mountains."  The story by DT correspondent Daimen McElroy claims the 
US extends covert support to the PKK that attacks Iranian 
infrastructure and troops.  A leading member of the PKK, Murat 
Karayilan, is quoted as saying "We told the Iranians who wanted us 
to attack Americans that the US and Britain were going to solve the 
Kurdish problem and we will be with them."  Karayilan also 
complained that the US has done too little for the Kurds.  The story 
also says US helicopters reportedly carry the PKK militants to 
support PJAK in its fight against Iran. 
 
Petraeus-Crocker Hearings on Iraq 
All papers report General David Petraeus and the US Ambassador to 
Baghdad, Ryan Crocker, began two days of hearings on Capitol Hill 
discussing the White House's Iraq strategy.  They delivered to 
Congress a long-awaited report on the state of the war in Iraq, in 
which Petraeus said 2,000 troops would be pulled back by the end of 
this month and as many as 30,000 would be gradually withdrawn by 
July 2008.  Ambassador Crocker underlined the importance for Iraq of 
developing good ties with its neighbors, and pointed to the Iraq's 
neighbors' meeting to be held in October in Istanbul.  Crocker also 
said Syria allowed terrorist infiltrations into Iraq and accused the 
Iranian government of its damaging role in Iraq, say papers. 
 
Turkish - Syrian Foreign Ministers Meet to Discuss Israeli Warplane 
Incident 
All papers report that Syrian FM Muallim arrived in Turkey following 
the Israeli plane violation of Syrian airspace.  Muallim met with 
President Gul, PM Erdogan and FM Babacan.  In a joint press 
conference with Babacan, Muallim said that they exchanged views over 
issues concerning security of the two countries, stability of the 
region, and the recent developments in Iraq.  Muallim criticized 
Israel for the hostile act and added that Syria is aware of the fact 
that Turkey will never use its own territory for hostile acts 
against Syria.  FM Babacan said that Turkey requested an explanation 
from Israel regarding aircraft which violated Syrian and Turkish 
airspace.  "All countries in the region must avoid acts that may 
lead to tension, and these developments are unacceptable," added 
Babacan. 
 
US Base at Iranian Border 
Yeni Safak, Zaman and Cumhuriyet cited the internet site of the Wall 
Street Journal in reporting that the Pentagon is preparing to build 
a military base near the Iran-Iraq border to try to curtail the flow 
of advanced Iranian weapons to Shiite militants in Iraq. 
 
Investigation into Missing US Weapons 
 
ANKARA 00002315  002 OF 003 
 
 
Leftist-nationalist Cumhuriyet reported that to investigate the 
missing US weapons, the Pentagon, sent an 18-member delegation led 
by retired general Claude Kicklighter, to Iraq.  Reportedly, 
Kicklighter will stay in Iraq until he concludes the investigation 
and will stop in Ankara to meet with Turkish officials before he 
submits his report to Secretary of Defense Robert Gates. 
 
Patriarch Bartholomew I to Receive EU Human Rights Award 
Sabah and Milliyet report the Greek Orthodox Patriarch Bartholomew I 
is among the candidates for the European Union's human rights award 
for 2007.  A shortlist of three candidates will be drawn up by the 
European Parliament's foreign affairs and development committees 
September 24, and the winner will be picked by the leaders of the 
assembly's political groups in October. 
 
Editorial Commentary on 9/11 Anniversary 
Ali Bulac writes in the Islamist-leaning Zaman:  "As time passes, we 
see some new information about the events of September 11 which 
increasingly indicates that it was not an ordinary terror incident; 
instead some 'deep state' elements were involved.  There has been 
lots of speculation about who carried out the attacks, mostly 
pointing to Bin Laden and al-Qaeda.  For some, the covert figures in 
America were behind it, while some argued that al-Qaeda was only 
used as a contractor.  There will be even more speculation.  The 
fact of the matter is that we will never be clear about who indeed 
carried out the attacks.  Thus it is better to talk about the 
results instead of focusing on who did it." 
 
Yusuf Kaplan writes in the Islamist-leaning Yeni Safak: "When 
President Bush described the 9/11 attacks as 'an attack against our 
lifestyles' he had the answer in his head: Muslim terrorists.  By 
using the twin towers attack, the US has created an excuse to attack 
the Muslim world and Islam.  There has been a fight against Islam 
since it was considered a global enemy right after the demise of 
communism.  America did not want Muslim societies to gain 
independence which would be the end of exploiting natural resources 
as well as the end of American collaboration with dictators. 
Eventually, we will learn the truth behind the 9/11 attacks -- when 
the ongoing fight against terrorism story comes to an end one way or 
the other." 
 
TV News: 
NTV 
 
Domestic News 
 
- Foreign Minister Ali Babacan said the second expanded meeting of 
Iraq's neighbors will be held on October 31-November 1 in Istanbul. 
 
 
- The Islamist-nationalist BBP leader Muhsin Yazicioglu said the 
pro-Kurdish DTP should be closed down if the party members continue 
calling terrorists "brothers." 
 
- The Turkish Union of Chambers (TOBB) President Rifat 
Hisarciklioglu said Turkey needs annual growth of 7.5 percent to 
solve the problem of unemployment. 
 
- More than 60 academic papers by 15 physicists from four Turkish 
universities containing apparently plagiarized work have been 
removed from the popular preprint server arXiv, where many 
physicists post their work before publication. 
 
International News 
 
- The northern Iraqi Kurdistan Democrat Party (KDP) website reports 
the Iraqi Parliament has decided to postpone a referendum with 
regard to the future of Kirkuk to May 2008. 
 
- German Chancellor Merkel has expressed backing to the proposal of 
 
ANKARA 00002315  003 OF 003 
 
 
French President Sarkozy for the establishment of a committee of 
wise men to discuss the future of accession talks with the EU. 
 
- Pakistan's former Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif was deported to 
Saudi Arabia after being arrested by police on his arrival at 
Islamabad yesterday. 
 
- European Parliament has adopted a report confirming that July 22 
elections in Turkey met European standards. 
 
WILSON