VZCZCXRO9399
PP RUEHIK RUEHPOD RUEHYG
DE RUEHAK #1737 2801430
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
P 061430Z OCT 08
FM AMEMBASSY ANKARA
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 7599
INFO RUEHZG/NATO EU COLLECTIVE PRIORITY
RUEKJCS/JCS WASHDC PRIORITY
RUEKJCS/SECDEF WASHDC PRIORITY
RUFGSHZ/SACEUR MONS BE PRIORITY
RHMCSUU/SACEUR POLAD SHAPE BE PRIORITY

UNCLAS ANKARA 001737 
 
SIPDIS 
 
DEPARTMENT FOR EUR/SE, EUR/RPM, AND L/T 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PARM MARR NATO PREL KTIA TU
SUBJECT: TURKEY: RATIFICATION OF NATO ACCESSION PROTOCOL 
FOR NEW MEMBERS ON TRACK 
 
REF: STATE 106321 
 
¶1. (U) We delivered reftel demarche requesting an update on 
the status of Turkey's efforts to ratify the NATO accession 
protocols for Albania and Croatia to MFA NATO Policy 
Department Head Gulhane Ulutekin on October 6.  She said the 
bills to approve the accession protocols have been drafted 
and are currently under review at the Prime Ministry. 
Ulutekin, who has been tracking the status of the protocols 
for the MFA, said she did not expect any problems with the 
ratification process. 
 
¶2. (U) Ulutekin explained that once the Prime Ministry has 
approved the text of the draft bills, it will circulate the 
bill for signature by the Council of Ministers.  With the 
Council of Ministers' approval, the bill will be sent to the 
speaker of parliament, who will in turn submit the draft to 
the parliament's Foreign Affairs and Defense Committees for 
review.  Once the committees approve, the bill will go to the 
full parliament for a vote, where a simple majority is needed 
to approve the protocols.  Ulutekin noted that the Croatian 
embassy in Ankara has been actively checking on the status of 
the ratification process and has requested an appointment 
with the speaker of parliament to brief him on Croatia's 
efforts to join NATO.  Ulutekin predicted that the bill will 
be submitted to the speaker of parliament by the end of the 
month and ratified before the end of the year, well in 
advance of the April 2009 NATO summit. 
 
Visit Ankara's Classified Web Site at 
http://www.intelink.sgov.gov/wiki/Portal:Turk ey 
 
WILSON