Cyprus-Forum.com

[CBBB]

ANKARA (Hurriyet Daily News)—Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan has allegedly admitted to being unable to control Turkish military flights that frequently cause tension in the Aegean region between neighbors Turkey and Greece, according to a leaked U.S. Embassy cable from 2004.

The cable, which was recently released by the whistle-blowing website WikiLeaks, notes that then-Dutch Foreign Minister Bernard Bot was “disturbed” by Erdogan’s admission to him “that he could not stop the flights because he did not control the military.”
The leaked report from the U.S. ambassador to the Netherlands was filed on December 2, 2004 following a meeting with Bot just days before a crucial European Union meeting in which members agreed to permit Turkey to begin negotiations for full EU membership.

According to the leaked cable, Bot asked for U.S. assistance in convincing Turkey to suspend military operations in the Aegean until at least Dec. 17 because the flights were providing a pretext for Greece to agitate against Turkish accession.

The material published by WikiLeaks has yet to be corroborated by evidence.

Relations between the secular Turkish military and the ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) have been problematic since Erdogan came to power in late 2002. Apart from disagreements over interpretations of secularism, the military has also opposed the government’s foreign policy, especially on Cypriot and Aegean issues.

Although the Greek and Turkish governments have improved ties in many areas in recent years, they have failed to produce a formula to end the Aegean dispute. Greek Prime Minister George Papandreou harshly criticized Turkish jets’ continued flights over residential areas on the Greek islands during a recent meeting in Erzurum with Erdogan and nearly 160 Turkish ambassadors.

The EU meeting on December 17, 2004 assured Turkey that it would be permitted to begin negotiations on November 3, 2005 after the Turkish government agreed to sign the Ankara Protocol that expanded the customs union agreement to southern Cyprus, a EU member that Turkey does not recognize. The signing of the document caused domestic controversy in Turkey, with the opposition claiming that the move could be interpreted as de facto recognition of Cyprus, a claim that was refuted by the government.

Washington, however, also seemed to interpret the signing of the Ankara Protocol as tantamount to Turkey’s recognition of Greek Cyprus. “Bot argued that Turkey must eventually agree to sign the protocol to the Ankara Agreement (effectively recognizing Cyprus),” read the cable, which attributed the words in parenthesis to the U.S. ambassador.

Though Turkey has signed the Ankara Protocol, it has yet to ratify the document in Parliament. If it were to do so, it would be forced to open its ports and airports to Greek Cypriots.

Such a move could speed up Turkey’s ongoing accession negotiations as nearly one-third of the chapters are suspended due to Ankara’s intransigence on the Cyprus issue.

http://asbarez.com/92385/wikileaks-erdo ... -military/

[B25]

OK this put a whole new light on the matter, so, we no longer want to deal with the puppets nor Turkey now, we should be speaking directly to the military.

I mean, wtf, anything the turks sign is useless, we will just open ourselves to further abuse. And the EU is even considering entering Turkey into the club. An uncontrolable military force ha ha, you just got to laugh.

What a wasted nation.

[supporttheunderdog]

little surprise here: Turkish military imperatives and the strategic importance of Cyprus to Turkey (not the protection of the T/C's) have probably been the driving force in most aspects of the Cyprus Problem since 1955, including the opposition to Enosis and promotion of Takism.

IMHO it was failures to take this factor into account on a number of occassions by the Greeks and Greek speaking Cypriots, particularly in 1963 - 1974, that lead to the invasion in 74 and as correctly observed above must be taken into account in the present talks.

Not a situation I approve of, but that is real-politik.

[Oracle]

Once again, a disgrace to NATO!

Loose cannons ...

[Klik]

Didn't we already know this?

[Oracle]

Yes, but Erdogan was clueless as to how powerless he really is.

Let's hope this revelation doesn't tip him over the edge and he has another nervous breakdown ....

[All4114All]

If I was to reply to the heading "WikiLeaks: Erdogan Not in Control of Military" and not to the document itself as it was 7 years ago. Today we have the Sledgehammer trials proceeding in court as we speak. I think there is control in some form or another.

Here is a link if people are unaware of the trial.
http://www.globalrights.info/focus/turk ... judge.html

[bill cobbett]

If I was to reply to the heading "WikiLeaks: Erdogan Not in Control of Military" and not to the document itself as it was 7 years ago. Today we have the Sledgehammer trials proceeding in court as we speak. I think there is control in some form or another.

Here is a link if people are unaware of the trial.
http://www.globalrights.info/focus/turk ... judge.html

And also to bring things a bit more up to date, recall the Intransigence of the Turkish Army in CY a couple of years ago who kept putting barriers to the opening of the Ledras St Crossing Point and to bring things really, really slap bang up to date it was Armed Paramilitaries in the Pay of and Controlled by The Turkish Army who threw Christian Worshippers out of their Churches in Yialousa and Rizokarpasso this past Christmas Eve.

The Turkish Army are in control in the Occupied Areas and totally out of control, a law unto themselves.

[Oracle]

... trials proceeding in court as we speak. I think there is control in some form or another...

Silly us! We forgot Erdogan controls the Courts!

[wyoming cowboy]

If there is a solution who is going to step up and guarantee that Turkey fulfills its obligations, what if the military doesnt want to withdraw from its positions? After the invasion the officers that took part in the invasion were granted Gc properties and some of them have hotels built on them today illegally. Are these same officers going to just give them up?