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FM AMCONSUL ADANA
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RUEHGB/AMEMBASSY BAGHDAD 0143
RUEHDA/AMCONSUL ADANA 1310

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 ADANA 000008 
 
SENSITIVE 
(CORRECTED COPY) 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: ETRD ECON PREL PGOV TU IZ
SUBJECT: TURKEY:  LOCAL CONTACTS IN SOUTHEAST REPORT BUSINESS IS 
BRISK AT HABUR GATE 
 
¶1.  (SBU)  SUMMARY:  Local contacts in the Southeast say 
sustained pressure from the business community and high-level 
interest in Ankara has led to increased capacity and efficiency 
of operations at the Turkey-Iraq border crossing at Habur Gate. 
From October 2008 to January 2009, Habur Gate's daily vehicular 
traffic has increased from about 800 trucks a day to 3,000. 
This improvement has reduced the round trip for Turkish trucks 
carrying export goods from 21 to 5 days, a great boon to local 
business and the transportation industry.  END SUMMARY. 
 
 
 
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A STAGNANT HABUR GATE CHOKES AREA BUSINESSES 
 
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¶2.  (SBU) Cizre Chamber of Commerce President Adnan Elci told us 
that, as recently as October 2008, Habur Gate operations were 
nearly stagnant due to inefficient vehicle processing procedures 
and a critical shortage of platform and customs personnel.  Out 
of 12 total outbound lanes or processing platforms, only four 
were operational during the day, and three at night.  The 
inbound lanes were staffed only by three registry clerks, Elci 
said, and were causing up to 15-day delays on the Iraqi side. 
Elci contended the toll on area businesses was devastating, as 
the practical result of these conditions resulted in a Turkish 
trucker being able to make only one round trip per month.  An 
October communiqui from the Chamber of Commerce to the Sirnak 
governor lamented the paltry number of vehicles passing in a 
24-hour period - about 800 - and recommended maximizing platform 
usage to a minimum of ten inbound and outbound, adding 80 
customs officials and anti-narcotics officers, and purchasing 
X-ray machines for the inbound platforms. 
 
 
 
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PRESSURE FROM UP HIGH AND DOWN LOW BRINGS CHANGE 
 
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¶3.  (SBU)  With mounting pressure from the business community, 
including the Diyarbakir Industrialists and Businessmen's 
Association (DISIAD), the Federation of East and Southeast 
Anatolian Industrialists and Businessmen (DOGUNSIFED), and the 
Turkish-Arab Businessmen's Association (TURAB), high-level 
officials in Ankara began looking into the matter of Habur 
personally.  DISIAD President Raif Turk told us he had pressed 
the issue with a number of senior officials, including State 
Minister Kursat Tuzmen, who quickly tasked Turkish Exporters 
Assembly General Secretary Mehmet Buyueksi with tracking the 
issue and filing a daily status report.  Turk also said 
Diyarbakir Governor Huseyin Avni Mutlu, who had earlier served 
as governor in Sirnak, played a role in bringing about positive 
changes.  Thanks to the efforts of NGOs, Turk said additional 
employees had been added to Habur, which had increased the 
number of operational platforms and overall efficiency. 
 
 
 
¶4.  (SBU)  Elci echoed Turk's comments, noting before December 
31, 2008, the "TIR Park," or the area where trucks queue up to 
travel into Iraq, had been operated by the Transporters' 
Cooperative.  Now both the land and the operations, which are 
owned by Sirnak province, have reverted to central government 
control.  Elci confirmed 20 platforms are now operational in 
Habur, ten inbound and ten outbound, reducing round-trip time 
for trucks heading into northern Iraq to one week or less. 
TURAB members corroborated press reports that approximately 
3,000 trucks are now processed each way, and said the bustling 
Habur operations were contributing to a surge in trade and 
commerce, which is particularly vital during this economic slump. 
 
 
 
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ADANA 00000008  002 OF 002 
 
 
COMMENT 
 
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¶5.  (SBU) As Elci pointed out, the ongoing rapprochement among 
Turkey, Iraq and the KRG has doubtless played a significant role 
in bringing about a more efficient Habur Gate.  The GOT 
reportedly spent some $33 million dollars upgrading Habur a few 
years ago, only to contract operations to about 20% of the daily 
vehicle load handled in the Saddam era.  Business is now brisk 
not only for commercial businesses and the transportation 
industry, but for local restaurants and hotels as well.  The 
manager of Silopi's new Grand Hotel, the closest lodging to 
Habur that opened its doors less than five months ago, reports a 
70% occupation rate during weekdays and says business is great. 
While happy about the boon to the local economy, more cynical 
contacts maintain that NGOs and businesses have been vocal for 
years about Habur's shortcomings, and say it's no coincidence 
the improvements came just a few months before the local 
elections.  Timing is everything in local politics.  END COMMENT. 
GREEN