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UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 03 ANKARA 001130 
 
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 PREL KPAO
SUBJECT: TURKISH MEDIA REACTION 
TUESDAY, AUGUST 4, 2009 
 
In Today's Papers 
 
Erdogan Signals He'll Meet the DTP at a 'Suitable Time' 
Papers report that in a meeting with his ruling AKP lawmakers 
yesterday, Prime Minister Erdogan stressed that Turkey had to solve 
the Kurdish question to "move forward."  Erdogan underlined Turkey 
had to work out its own solution, and said his government was going 
to hold talks with all civic organizations and parties to discuss 
the issue.  On the sharp criticism fired by the MHP's leader Devlet 
Bahceli against the ruling government's Kurdish initiative, Erdogan 
said there would be no point in holding discussions with the MHP 
that sees the Kurdish initiative as a "separatist move" and an "act 
of treason."  Erdogan, however, signaled that he was ready to hold a 
meeting with the DTP "at a suitable time."  Erdogan said that 
earlier he had refused to meet the DTP because the request for 
appointment came at a time when ten Turkish soldiers were killed in 
a PKK attack.  Mainstream Vatan says Erdogan gave the message that 
dealing with the PKK's imprisoned leader Abdullah Ocalan was "out of 
the question." 
 
Editorials on Turkey's Kurdish Question 
 
Mehmet Barlas commented in mainstream Sabah:  It really seems that 
it is more convenient for Turkey to launch initiatives to produce 
new issues rather than resolve issues.  Turkey has a full list of 
unresolved issues and has an addiction to problems.  While other 
countries are resolving their problems one by one, we are still 
searching for a solution to the Cyprus issue after 35 years.  The 
re-opening of Halki Seminary and the headscarf issue also have been 
on our list of unresolved issues for a long time.  And now, there is 
the Kurdish issue.  If the governing AKP was the opposition party, I 
am sure, they would reject the government's initiative for the 
Kurdish issue.  Because, in this geography, the political parties 
cannot survive without unrecoverable problems.  And always, in the 
end, governments place unresolved issues on the shelf by saying 
there is no sufficient public support." 
 
Enis Berberoglu wrote in mainstream Hurriyet:  In the past, Turkey's 
path could be changed only by military coups.  But now, we can hear 
the steps of a civilian coup regarding the Kurdish issue.  It is not 
satisfactory for some that Turkey end the war in the mountains. For 
them, Turkey should protect the Kurds in the region as well. 
Against who?  Against Arabs and Iranians.  Moreover, there is 
another responsibility planned for Turkey, which is to find secure 
ports for Kurdish and Arab oil.  Until today, military coups were 
approved by the U.S.  However, the military cannot be used in the 
search for a solution of the Kurdish issue.  Instead, this time a 
civilian coup will be tried.  The U.S.' loyal ally the Turkish 
military will be suppressed and the U.S.' other loyal ally sect 
(cemaat)forces will be sent to the front.  The warriers of this new 
coup will be elected from those detained in the Ergenekon case while 
the police and tax officials will be able to suppress all kinds of 
opposition. 
 
Gungor Mengi wrote in mainstream Vatan:  In order to resolve the 
Kurdish issue, the disarmament of the PKK should be accepted.  Any 
initiative in the region to establish a separate nation will not 
only harm the republic of Turkey but, at the same time, it will be a 
huge trap for the Kurdish origin citizens of this country. 
 
Fikret Bila questioned in mainstream Milliyet:  What happened to 
"Ataturk's Model" for a solution to Kurdish issue?  Interior 
Minister Besir Atalay's "Turkey Model" will not bring about a 
solution but will accelerate the disintegration of the country. 
That is what the DTP and the PKK have been demanding.  It is not 
possible to believe that this process will strengthen the Turkish 
Republic's national and political unity. 
 
Cengiz Candar wrote in liberal Radikal: MHP leader Bahceli should 
not reject the AKP government's Kurdish initiative, which brings 
hope to millions of people in the country for internal peace. 
 
ANKARA 00001130  002 OF 003 
 
 
 
Ihsan Dagi wrote in Islamist-oriented Zaman:  It is time to openly 
discuss the proposed solution for the Kurdish issue.  To be able to 
do this, Turkey should trust itself and its people first. 
 
Putin Due to Discuss Important Topics in Ankara on Thursday 
(Haberturk) 
Mainstream Haberturk reports Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin 
will pay a one-day state visit to Turkey on August 6.  The paper 
says Putin was expected to discuss the nuclear plant tender of a 
Turkish-Russian consortium, problems in finding new gas suppliers 
for the Nabucco pipeline project, the Blue Stream-2 project, 
developments regarding the Nagorno-Karabakh issue, and the customs 
problems between Turkey and Russia. 
 
Turkish Stock Markets Returning to 'Old, Better Days' (Hurriyet) 
Papers report that Turkish stocks rallied after a government auction 
Monday raised a quarter of the funds needed to repay the country's 
debt this month.  The benchmark IMKB-100 index of the Istanbul Stock 
Exchange gained more than 4.6 percent.  On Monday, the U.S. Dollar 
was trading at around 1.461 Turkish Liras, having lost 0.6 percent 
against the lira since Friday's closing.  Mainstream Hurriyet's 
webpage quotes three top bankers as telling Fortune Turkey that an 
era of 'supervised finance' is beginning in the world, noting that 
Turkey has learned much from its own 2001 crisis. "There may be a 
return to the Genoese-style banking, but then there will be another 
crisis. Leave the capitalists alone and the capitalists will run to 
crisis, because they have an appetite and they want more," said one 
banker. 
 
Turk Detained in Northern Iraq Was Awarded $300 Million in Contracts 
(Vatan) 
Mainstream Vatan reports on its front page that Deniz Turkkan, a 
Turkish businessman who was detained in Suleymaniye in northern Iraq 
by U.S. Special Forces in 2003, was awarded $300 Million in 
contracts with the U.S. government, including the reconstruction of 
the U.S. Embassy in Pakistan. 
 
New 'Kardak' Tension in the Aegean (Vatan) 
Mainstream Vatan warns of a "new Kardak (Imia) crisis," saying 
Greece has "owned" Karaada, an islet near the Greek island of Meis, 
and one km off Turkey's Mediterranean coast.  Vatan says the Dogan 
Media Group-owned Kanal-D television reported last night Greece has 
set up a station and a watch tower in the island, and also deployed 
a warship to the region.  According to the Paris Treaty, the island 
is not under any particular ownership, and is closed to settlement. 
A week ago, the Greek press had reported 'A thousand Greek commandos 
were deployed to the islets,' but the reports were denied by the 
Greek military, says Vatan. 
 
China Warns its Nationals to Exercise 'Caution' in Turkey (Aksam, 
Zaman) 
Mainstream Aksam and Islamist-oriented Zaman report China's Foreign 
Ministry has warned its nationals to be "cautious in Turkey."  In a 
webpage statement over the weekend, the ministry advised Chinese 
residents and organizations in Turkey to "avoid populous areas and 
sensitive sites as much as possible," saying some Chinese people and 
groups have received threats.  Relations between Turkey and China 
were affected after violent clashes between the local Muslim Uighurs 
and the dominant Han Chinese community in capital Urumqi last 
month. 
 
Rasmussen "Extends An Olive Branch To Muslim Countries" (Zaman) 
Media outlets highlight the positive messages that new NATO 
Secretary-General, former Danish PM Anders Fogh Rasmussen sent to 
Turkey and other Muslim nations on his first day on the job. 
Islamist-oriented Zaman headlines, "On The First Day as NATO 
Secretary General, Rasmussen Extended An Olive Branch to The Muslim 
world," and the article notes, "Rasmussen said he will invite 
leaders of Muslim countries to NATO headquarters in order to have 
consultations together." Mainstream Milliyet writes in "A Warm 
 
ANKARA 00001130  003 OF 003 
 
 
Message from Rasmussen," that, "The NATO Secretary General hopes to 
have close cooperation with Muslim countries," and he said he hoped 
"to fulfill the commitments he made to Turkey before he was 
appointed to the post."  Mainstream Vatan reports Rasmussen said, 
"Eliminating the obstacles blocking cooperation between the EU and 
NATO is one of his priorities," adding that, "this would be the main 
issue he will discuss during his upcoming visits to Turkey and to 
Greece." 
 
In a related story, Mainstream Milliyet notes "Former U.S. Secretary 
of State, Madeleine Albright, has been appointed to head NATO's 
Committee of Wise Men." 
 
Iran Awaits Khamenei's Order for Nuclear Bomb (Milliyet) 
Papers note with concern a report from the British outlet The Times 
indicating Iran will be capable of making a nuclear bomb within six 
months, according to an order from the country's religious leader 
Ali Khamenei.  Leftist-nationalist Cumhuriyet headlines, "The Rope 
of the Nuclear Program is in Khamenei's Hands," and reports, 
"Iranian researchers could implement an order to produce an atomic 
bomb in one year - the first six months will be spent enriching the 
necessary uranium and the next six months will be spent producing 
nuclear warheads."  Mainstream Sabah headlines, "One Year is Enough 
for Iran (To Create) A Nuclear Missile." 
 
Gates and Mullen's "Secret Afghanistan Meeting in Europe" (Zaman) 
Islamist-oriented Zaman reports U.S. Secretary of Defense Robert 
Gates and U.S. Chairman of the Joint Chiefs Admiral Mike Mullen had 
a "secret" meeting over the weekend in Europe with the top 
commanders in Afghanistan. The meeting was held at a military base 
in Belgium to discuss troop levels and security issues in 
Afghanistan. CENTCOM Commander David Petraeus, Commander of U.S. 
Forces in Afghanistan General Stanley McChrystal, NATO EUCOM General 
James Stavridis, U.S. Department of Defense Undersecretary Michele 
Flournoy and senior military advisor David Rodriguez were among the 
U.S. officials who attended the meeting, says Zaman. 
 
TV News (CNN Turk) 
 
Domestic 
 
- The 'Kurdish Initiative' planned by the government includes new 
regulations regarding children facing trial for throwing stones at 
the security forces.  Under the current regulations, prosecutors 
demand up to 25-year prison sentences for such children, while 
members of terror organizations are given up to 5.5-year sentences. 
 
 
- In Adana, police detained 14 suspected PKK members, including two 
women.  The pro-Kurdish DTP has denounced the detentions. 
 
- A man, armed with a knife, attacked and forced a Protestant 
missionary to kiss the Turkish flag in Istanbul yesterday. 
 
World 
 
- A government spokesman said in Berlin that Chancellor Angela 
Merkel will not send a customary letter of congratulation to Iran's 
reelected President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad for his inauguration due 
Wednesday. 
 
- A Turkish cargo ship was attacked by pirates off Nigeria.  Two 
crew members were injured. 
 
- Malaysia plans to use Turkey as a jumping board for exporting palm 
oil to the Middle East, Central Asia and North Africa. 
 
JEFFREY