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UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 03 ANKARA 002813 
 
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 
WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 21, 2007 
 
In Today's Papers 
 
US Generals Pay 'Surprise' Visit to Ankara 
All papers report the Vice Chairman of the US Joint Chiefs of Staff 
General James Cartwright and the Commander of the Multinational 
Forces in Iraq, General David Petraeus, paid a "surprise" visit to 
Ankara on Tuesday for talks with Deputy Chief of the Turkish General 
Staff (TGS) General Ergin Saygun. 
 
The US generals and their Turkish counterparts discussed the latest 
measures taken against the the PKK in northern Iraq and ways to 
share real time intelligence.  Mainstream Milliyet says that, in the 
meeting, the Turks asked the US to share satellite images showing 
activities at PKK camps.  Islamist-oriented Yeni Safak claims 
General Saygun said both sides worked on the coordination of 
cross-border operations.  According to mainstream Sabah, new 
security measures, applied after the November 5 meeting between 
Erdogan and Bush, were discussed.  An unnamed senior Turkish 
official said the measures were below Turkish expectations, adding 
that it was not possible to see immediate results.  Sabah reports 
General Petraeus' special envoy General Michael Barbaro went to 
Erbil to discuss measures against the PKK with Kurdish Regional 
Authority head, Necirvan Barzani.   Several papers note that the 
separate statements issued from the US Embassy in Ankara and TGS 
emphasized that the PKK was a "mutual enemy."   Yeni Safak says 
Prime Minister Erdogan and TGS chief General Yasar Buyukanit will 
meet Wednesday to evaluate developments. 
 
Erdogan, Baykal, Bahceli on DTP, the PKK 
All papers report that opposition CHP leader Deniz Baykal in a party 
group meeting on Tuesday characterizes Prime Minister Erdogan's call 
for the PKK's 'laying down of arms' as "the rhetoric of the PKK." 
"Now they make demands against our national unity.  We see a typical 
disintegration period.  We have seen this movie before," said 
Baykal.  The far right MHP leader Devlet Bahceli, addressing his 
party group, lashed out at Erdogan for "hiding his true intentions" 
for an amnesty for the terrorists.  "They have been gradually 
calling for political amnesty to include the Imrali murderer 
[Abdullah Ocalan].  The DTP is the Ankara branch office of Mount 
Kandil," Bahceli stressed, criticizing the ruling AKP government for 
remaining silent in the face of "DTP challenges against the state, 
constitution and laws." 
 
"There's no general amnesty in our agenda," Erdogan responded to 
Baykal and Bahceli in a meeting with his ruling AKP group.  "We are 
not going to take orders from the CHP or MHP regarding a 
cross-border operation; our government and military will determine 
the time for such an action.  We are not cowboys with guns in hand," 
Erdogan emphasized.  Erdogan also called on the DTP to "choose 
either arms or democracy." 
 
 
Turkish al-Qaeda Suspects Escape from Abu Ghraib 
Mainstream Milliyet's front page story claims that two al-Qaeda 
suspects, Burhan Kus and Sadettin Aktas, blamed for twin suicide car 
bomb attacks in Istanbul in November 2003, escaped from Abu Ghraib 
prison.  The two escaped as they were being transferred to another 
prison.  Kus and Aktas were arrested in Iraq and put in Abu Ghraib 
in 2005.  A team of Istanbul police went to Abu Ghraib the same year 
to interrogate the suspects.  US officials confirmed to the Turkish 
Foreign Minsitry (MFA) that the two suspects escaped, says Milliyet. 
 
 
12 Turkish Firms on CPI's UFO List for Iraq 
Yeni Safak's front page story reports on the recent report by the US 
Center for Public Integrity (CPI) on contracting in Iraq and 
Afghanistan.  According to the paper, in the last three years, the 
majority of contracts in Iraq and Afghanistan were awarded to only 
100 companies, with "US VP Cheney's Halliburton" taking the lead 
with $16 billion.  Security firms such as DynCorp and Blackwater - 
 
ANKARA 00002813  002 OF 003 
 
 
companies held responsible for civilian deaths - are also high in 
the list.  $20.4 billion in contracts went to "UFO companies" 
(unidentified foreign organizations) of which twelve are Turkish, 
says Yeni Safak. 
 
Editorial Opinion: Turkish Domestic Politics/PKK 
 
Managing editor Ismet Berkan of liberal-intellectual daily Radikal 
wrote: "When the American black community fought for equal rights, 
Martin Luther King Jr. emerged as a great leader for the movement. 
His 1964 'I have a Dream' speech became the cornerstone of the civil 
rights movement.  Because of MLK's leadership, the movement pursued 
peaceful civil disobedience and never engaged in violence.  At that 
time, there were other groups who believed in achieving the same 
goal through violence, such as the Black Panthers.  However, MLK's 
powerful movement left the Black Panthers on the sidelines.  The 
essence of Turkey's Kurdish problem is an equality issue.  Some in 
the Kurdish community do not feel they have equal civil rights under 
the law.  Some have chosen to fight this fight as PKK terrorists. 
During the last 23 years, we've lost nearly 40,000 lives, and most 
of them were Kurds.  And yet, during the last 23 years, no leader 
like MLK has emerged from the Kurdish community.  Today, we 
desperately need a Martin Luther King figure for Kurds who can 
denounce violence and work effectively for civil rights.  The 
pro-Kurdish party DTP had the chance, but they simply ignored it." 
 
Okay Gonensin argued in mainstream daily Vatan: "Turkey can talk 
about a comprehensive amnesty plan for the PKK when and if the PKK 
disarms and disbands.  The implementation of an amnesty program 
cannot and should not cover those who engage in drug trafficking and 
murder.  Those who can leave their arms with no blood on their hands 
deserve an amnesty.  In any case, Turkish people cannot digest any 
amnesty plan unless the main preconditions of disarmament are met. 
At this point, Turkey should do everything possible to encourage 
peace and democracy.  Turkey must refrain from any step which might 
play into the PKK's violent tactics." 
 
 
TV Highlights 
NTV 
 
Domestic News 
 
- In Ankara on Tuesday, Turkey and Iran signed an agreement for 
electricity cooperation, despite warnings from the US.  Turkish 
Energy Minister Hilmi Guler said that, despite US reactions, Turkey 
and Iran would sign further agreements for cooperation in oil and 
natural gas. 
 
- Joost Lagendijk, the co-chairman of the Turkey-EU joint 
parliamentary commission, warned that the lawsuit to ban pro-Kurdish 
DTP will harm Turkey's EU entry drive. 
 
- The opposition Freedom and Democracy Party (ODP) leader Ufuk Uras 
has submitted a proposal to parliament for Turkey to sign the 
Optional Protocol to the UN Convention against Torture. 
 
- German migration minister Maria Bohmer will visit Turkey on 
Tuesday for a three-day visit to discuss the integration of the 
Turks living in Germany with State Minister Nimet Cubukcu, Labor 
Minister Faruk Celik and State Minister Said Yazicioglu. 
 
- PM Erdogan and his ruling AKP MPs will gather in Kizilcahamam over 
the weekend to discuss constitutional reforms.  The AKP is expected 
to make its constitutional draft public on December 15. 
 
International News 
 
- Washington makes the last preparations for the November 27 
Annapolis conference for Middle East peace to which 49 countries, 
 
ANKARA 00002813  003 OF 003 
 
 
including Turkey, have been invited. 
 
- Kurdish regional government officials in northern Iraq said they 
have tightened measures against the PKK terrorists. 
 
- The US State Department has dropped plans to force diplomats to 
serve in Iraq now that it has found enough volunteers for vacant 
posts. 
 
- A helicopter of the US-led coalition forces crashed near Baghdad 
on Tuesday, killing two soldiers and wounding 12. 
 
WILSON