VZCZCXRO0167
RR RUEHDBU RUEHFL RUEHKW RUEHLA RUEHNP RUEHROV RUEHSR
DE RUEHAK #0287/01 0541718
ZNY CCCCC ZZH
R 231718Z FEB 09
FM AMEMBASSY ANKARA
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC 8876
INFO RUEHZL/EUROPEAN POLITICAL COLLECTIVE
RUEAIIA/CIA WASHDC
RHEFDIA/DIA WASHINGTON DC
RUEKJCS/JOINT STAFF WASHDC//JSJ3//
RUEUITH/ODC ANKARA TU
RHEHAAA/NSC WASHDC
RUEKJCS/SECDEF WASHDC

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 03 ANKARA 000287 
 
SIPDIS 
 
DEPT. FOR EUR/SE; H PLEASE PASS TO SENATOR DURBIN 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL: 02/24/2019 
TAGS: PREL OVIP PGOV CY GR TU
SUBJECT: CODEL DURBIN: TALKING CYPRUS -- AND HALKI -- WITH 
THE TURKS 
 
REF: ISTANBUL 73 
 
Classified By: CDA Doug Silliman for reasons 1.4(b,d) 
 
¶1. (C) SUMMARY: CODEL Durbin, led by Assistant Majority 
Leader Senator Richard Durbin, met with senior GOT officials 
February 19 on bilateral relations, Cyprus, and efforts by 
the Greek Orthodox Church to reopen Halki Theological 
Seminary for training of priests.  During the meetings, 
Senator Durbin emphasized the importance with which USG 
officials, both in the executive and legislative branches, 
view the US-Turkey strategic relationship.  He emphasized 
that following meetings in Cyprus, he believes 2009 offers a 
historic opportunity to achieve a comprehensive settlement 
and end over 40 years of 
conflict on the island.  GOT officials expressed hope that 
negotiations between Cypriot leaders Christofias and Talat 
will soon become more intense and urged the US to consider 
naming a special envoy, who can urge both sides (but 
especially the Greek Cypriots) to move forward more 
expeditiously.  A group of Turkish opinion makers sounded a 
pessimistic note on Cyprus negotiations, claiming ROC 
President Christofias and the Greek Cypriots have no 
motivation to reach a settlement and will seek to draw out 
negotiations well into 2010.  All GOT interlocutors 
emphasized the extreme damage to Turkey-US relations that 
would ensue should an Armenian Genocide Resolution pass in 
the US House of Representatives or US Senate, or should 
President Obama characterize the tragic events of 1915 as 
"genocide" in his statement marking April 24 as Armenian 
Remembrance Day.  END SUMMARY 
 
President Gul 
------------- 
 
¶2. (C) Senator Durbin emphasized to President Gul that the 
U.S. values Turkey,s friendship and loyalty and expressed 
appreciation for Turkish support through its positive 
contributions to NATO, in Afghanistan, Iraq, and on 
counterterrorism.  He also underscored continued strong US 
support for Turkey's EU accession aspirations.  Explaining 
his appreciation for the complicated nature of Cyprus 
reunification talks, Durbin expressed hope that a final 
solution could be reached this year that would bring to an 
end the island's long, sad, bloody history.  He also 
expressed admiration for T/C "President" Talat, G/C President 
Christofias, and their lead negotiators, Nami and Iacovou, 
saying that it required a great deal of political courage to 
resume talks last year, and expressed hope that Turkey could 
do all it can to encourage successful negotiations, to 
include possible "symbolic" steps. 
 
¶3. (C) President Gul responded that Turkey has given its full 
support to Talat.  Turkey is sincere in its hopes for a real 
solution and full-fledged cooperation on the island. 
However, what is required is a solution that will be viable 
and lasting.  Gul noted the need to recognize that there are 
two different nations with two different peoples existing on 
the island.  There should first be two constituent states 
with a degree of autonomy, states that would later, gradually 
find ways increasingly to cooperate and would become one 
nation out of functional necessity; economic realities will 
help facilitate true reunification.  Returning to a situation 
in which one community ruled the island with certain 
specified "minority rights" guaranteed to the other was not, 
in his view, a realistic approach.  The EU,s decision to 
allow a divided Cyprus into the EU had only further 
exacerbated a difficult situation. 
 
¶4. (C) Durbin encouraged Turkey to take bold steps for peace, 
noting that if Turkey makes a gesture and the Greek Cypriots 
do not reciprocate, the world will know, and he will 
challenge the ROC to answer in kind.  He also commented that 
he was encouraged by his visit and Turkey,s efforts to 
resolve its differences with neighbors Cyprus and Armenia. 
Gul responded that Turkey is "problem-solving" and recognizes 
the need to have good relations with all its neighbors.  He 
referred to GOT tolerance of more than 70,000 illegal 
Armenian workers in Turkey, encouragement of direct flights 
between Istanbul and Yerevan, bilateral cultural exchange 
programs, and an invitation to Armenia to join the Black Sea 
Economic Cooperation organization and GOT accreditation of 
the GOAM's Ambassador to its secretariat in Istanbul as 
 
ANKARA 00000287  002 OF 003 
 
 
evidence of GOT seriousness.  "I trust President Sargsian and 
believe he trusts me.  Let's set aside issues related to a 
resolution in the US Congress.  We seek good relations with 
Armenia and will continue to work toward that."  However, Gul 
warned that passage of a congressional resolution would make 
it impossible to continue the initiative because the 
atmosphere would become too poisonous. 
 
¶5. (C) Senator Durbin also raised the long-standing problems 
of the Greek Orthodox Church and asked if there is any way 
the GOT could find a way to allow the Halki Seminary to 
function as intended to train new priests in the Orthodox 
faith.  Gul responded that GOT officials are sympathetic to 
the needs of the Church in Turkey, calling the Patriarch and 
church members "our citizens, who provide us with richness of 
diversity."  He believes a way can be found to solve the 
problem, but it has legal ramifications that impact how all 
institutions of religious teaching are treated. 
 
Deputy Prime Minister Cicek 
--------------------------- 
 
¶6. (C) Deputy Prime Minister Cicek said he was well aware of 
the long-term importance of US-Turkey ties; he was the only 
one still in politics who had worked with former Turkish 
President Ozal.  Turkey today is working with the U.S. 
constructively in a wide region.  On Cyprus, Cicek reiterated 
that Turkey supports the goal of a settlement, but that any 
solution needs to be fair and lasting.  The "TRNC" and 
"President" Talat are making great efforts to resolve 
differences, but unilateral efforts in this regard will not 
be enough.  He added that one needs to understand the "facts 
of the island":  that there are two equal communities; the 
Turkish Cypriots "are not a minority."  He pointed to deals 
the Greek Cypriots have signed to purchase arms worth $200 
million from France and Russia.  Such deals make it difficult 
to believe they're seeking a long-term peaceful settlement. 
 
¶7. (C) Senator Durbin pressed Cicek for Turkey to show its 
support for peace and stability on Cyprus by symbolic 
gestures such as permitting overflights of Greek Cypriot 
civilian aircraft on the Turkish Cypriot side, and 
establishing an international group to study the future of 
Varosha.  Cicek replied that Ankara believes there is room 
for openings on both sides, but insisted that the Turkish 
Cypriots already have taken steps "such as approving the 
Annan Plan" and that it is time for the Greek Cypriots to 
reciprocate.  Still, if the isolation of the Turkish Cypriots 
is lifted, the Turkish side would be ready to open the 
airport (NOTE: This seems to refer to Nicosia Airport, closed 
since 1974.  END NOTE)  Senator Durbin underscored that if 
Ankara were to take a step, he would ask the Greek Cypriots 
to do the same.  He noted that he hopes that in the future 
both sides do not look back and say that an historic 
opportunity had been missed. 
 
¶8. (C) Durbin also appealed to Cicek to "start a dialogue" 
with Greece on reopening Halki Seminary.  Cicek responded 
that there are no specific regulations against Halki but that 
a 1974 general law applies to all theological faculties and 
stipulates that they must be connected to state universities. 
 The law is aimed primarily at regulating private Islamic 
schools.  Otherwise, "Turkey would turn into Pakistan."  He 
noted GOT officials have been working on finding a solution 
on Halki and sympathized with the Church's wish to train 
priests.  The Halki question is not political, it is 
judicial.  Turkey does not want to open itself to radicalism. 
 At the same time, Cicek asked rhetorically if Greece should 
not pay attention to the ethnic Turks living in Thrace, whose 
rights are "routinely violated." 
 
Ministry of Foreign Affairs 
--------------------------- 
 
¶9. (C) MFA Deputy Under Secretary Haydar Berk and DDG for 
Northeast Mediterranean Kerim Uras offered CODEL Durbin a 
lengthy briefing on Turkey's perspective of the historical 
basis of negotiations on the Cyprus issue and said Turkey,s 
support for a Cyprus settlement envisions a united island 
that would have a "significant, positive" impact on the 
eastern Mediterranean.  However, Ankara remains concerned 
about the current "unfriendly posture" of the Greek Cypriots. 
 Senator Durbin noted that if Talat and Christofias could be 
 
ANKARA 00000287  003 OF 003 
 
 
given a helping hand, they could succeed.  MFA U/S Ertugrul 
Apakan emphasized at a follow-on lunch that the GOT seeks a 
special envoy on Cyprus from the US.  Not someone so senior 
that he or she overshadows UN Special Rep. Downer, but 
someone who can ensure the US is engaged.  The US represents 
fairness, justice, and balance on the Cyprus issue, according 
to Apakan.  "We need your involvement."  Apakan also 
underscored the hands-off approach the GOT is taking on 
Cyprus negotiations, saying, "Talat does not need us to 
negotiate for him."  He noted that DDG Uras goes to the 
island once every couple weeks to get updates on the 
negotiations, but senior officials travel only on a quarterly 
basis to the island and, contrary to claims by Greek Cypriots 
that he is pulling Talat's strings from Ankara, Apakan 
claimed he had not spoken to Talat on the phone "in months." 
The problem according to Apakan, is that the Greek Cypriots 
"are not doing the intellectual work necessary to find a 
settlement, because they don't want a federation, they don't 
like power-sharing, and they don't like the idea of a 'new 
Cyprus.'" 
 
¶10. (C) Durbin asked if it would be possible for Greece and 
Turkey to open a conversation on Turkish schools in Greece 
and the Halki Seminary in Istanbul.  Berk insisted that 
Ankara had asked for such a dialogue two years ago, but had 
received no reply from the GOG.  He said Turkey has signed 33 
agreements with Greece, some with the assistance of the USG, 
such as the 1997 Madrid Agreement about the Aegean.  The 
level of Greece-Turkey trade now stands at 3 billion Euros. 
Greek investment in Turkey exceeds 5 billion Euros.  It is an 
ongoing process.  Berk also noted that the two countries 
engage in a mechanism called the Exploratory Talks regarding 
the Aegean.  Senator Durbin said the visit to Turkey by Greek 
PM Karamanlis, the first such visit in 49 years, had not 
seemed to be recognized by Ankara as a courageous and 
valuable gesture.  Berk seemed taken aback and replied that 
the Turkish Prime Minister himself had 
visited Greece "several times," and it was good that 
Karamanlis had finally been able to reciprocate.  He said 
both Athens and Ankara "have complaints" but that Ankara is 
trying to take a positive approach.  He suggested that the 
Greek Government has created a negative public opinion toward 
Turkey, and "now they say that public opinion ties their 
hands." 
 
¶11. (C) Durbin promised to reach out to FM Bakoyannis on the 
issue, which he did in a February 20 phone call following his 
meeting in Istanbul with the Ecumenical Patriarch (ref). 
Conveying Bakoyannis' expressed willingness to discuss the 
issue and the Patriarch's expressed hope that GOT officials 
would engage him on concerns of the Church, Durbin spoke with 
Dep U/S Berk by phone prior to his return to the US February 
¶20.  Berk said he was encouraged by the responses and that he 
would be happy to meet with the Patriarch personally.  They 
agreed to keep this initiative quiet for the time being. 
 
CODEL Durbin did not have an opportunity to clear on this 
message. 
 
Visit Ankara's Classified Web Site at 
http://www.intelink.sgov.gov/wiki/Portal:Turk ey 
 
Silliman