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Viewing cable 06ANKARA1328, COUNTRY CLEARANCE GRANTED FOR EUROPEAN REGIONAL

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Reference ID Created Released Classification Origin
06ANKARA1328 2006-03-13 14:48 2011-08-24 01:00 UNCLASSIFIED Embassy Ankara
VZCZCXYZ0002
PP RUEHWEB

DE RUEHAK #1328/01 0721448
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
P 131448Z MAR 06
FM AMEMBASSY ANKARA
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 3936
INFO RUEHBS/AMEMBASSY BRUSSELS PRIORITY 5154
RUEHSF/AMEMBASSY SOFIA PRIORITY 1001
RUEHBS/USEU BRUSSELS PRIORITY
UNCLAS ANKARA 001328 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: OTRA PGOV BE BU TU
SUBJECT: COUNTRY CLEARANCE GRANTED FOR EUROPEAN REGIONAL 
AFFAIRS (EUR/ERA) OFFICER JOHN ROBINSON TO TRAVEL TO TURKEY 
MARCH 16-18, 2006 
 
REF: STATE 38378 
 
1. Mission welcomes and grants country clearance to European 
Regional Affairs (EUR/ERA) Officer John Robinson to travel to 
Ankara from March 16-18, 2006. The purpose of this trip is 
for consultations with embassies and host government 
officials.  Embassy control officer for the visit is 
Political Officer Philip Kaplan, who can be contacted 24 
hours/day via the embassy switchboard at (90)(312)455-5555, 
ext. 0. 
 
2.  Hotel information will be provided in separate e-mail. 
 
3.  Visas:  All Americans traveling to Turkey must have a 
valid visa.  Travelers without a visa can obtain a visa valid 
for one entry/three months at port of entry upon payment of a 
USD 20 fee.  This fee is payable only in U.S. dollars cash. 
There is no fee for official travel if the visa is obtained 
outside of Turkey. 
 
4.  Health Safety:  Information on vaccinations and other 
health precautions can be obtained from the Center for 
Disease Control and Prevention hotline for international 
travelers (tel: 1-877-394-8747); fax 1-800-232-3299; or via 
the internet at HTTP//www.cdc.gov. 
 
5.  Security Assessment:  In the aftermath of Operation Iraqi 
Freedom (OIF) there continues to be the potential for both 
transnational and indigenous terrorist groups to target U.S. 
interests in Trkey.  After the Gulf War, the predecessor tothe Turkish Terrorist Group Revolutionary People's Liberation 
Party/Front (DHKP/C) assassinated four Americans in Turkey 
and carried out numerous bombings of U.S. targets (mostly 
private sector businesses, although two rockets were directed 
toward the Consulate General in Istanbul).  Subsequent to the 
ending of OIF hostilities, there have been isolated terrorist 
bombings attributed to DHKP/C and other indigenous terrorist 
groups in protest of OIF.  Other Turkish terrorist groups 
with anti-Western sympathies include Marxist-Leninist 
Communist Party (MLKP), Turkish Communist Party/Marxist 
Leninist (TKP/ML), Turkish Workers and Peasants Revolutionary 
Army (TIKKO) and Islamic Greater Eastern Raiders/Front 
(IBDA/C). 
 
Al-Qa'ida threats to target U.S. facilities in Turkey have 
been public knowledge for some time.  On November 15, two 
synagogues in Istanbul were the targets of suicide car bombs. 
 On November 20, the British Consulate General and the 
London-based HSBC bank in Istanbul were damaged by powerful 
explosions, killing dozens and wounding hundreds.  These 
incidents represent a significant change from prior attacks 
in Turkey, which have previously involved small-scale, random 
bombings and small numbers of casualties.  The investigations 
of these incidents in Istanbul remain open but transnational 
terrorist links are suspected.  The potential for violence 
and terrorist actions against U.S. citizens and interests 
continue. 
 
The Turkish National Police (TNP) is quite responsive in 
their role as protector of U.S. diplomatic and military 
interests in Turkey.  The TNP has provided enhanced coverage 
at each of our facilities in Ankara, Istanbul, Adana and 
Izmir.  The incidence of crime, both violent and the more 
traditional tourist crimes (pick pocketing, purse-snatching, 
etc.), is relatively low throughout Turkey.  Visitors to 
Istanbul should be aware that tourist-type crimes are more 
prevalent there, especially in the traditionalist tourist 
areas, such as Sultanahmet and Istiklal Caddesi.  The 
security office encourages visitors to report any security 
incidents, including surveillance, to the RSO immediately. 
 
Useful security information about Turkey is available on the 
following websites: 
 
--Embassy Ankara:  HTTP://WWW.USEMB-ANKARA.ORG.TR (Click on 
Security Matters) 
 
--Consulate General Istanbul: 
HTTP://USCONSULATE-ISTANBUL.ORG.TR 
 
6.  For further information regarding travel in Turkey, 
consult the consular information sheet.  The consulate 
information sheet and public announcements are available on 
the internet at:  HTTP://TRAVEL.STATE.GOV 
 
Other information is available on the following websites: 
 
--The State Department Consular Affairs (CA) websites: 
HTTP://WWW.TRAVEL.STATE.GOV/TURKEY.HTML 
 
 
 
--US Embassy Ankara: 
HTTP://WWW.USEMB-ANKARA.ORG.TR 
 
Visit Ankara's Classified Web Site at 
http://www.state.sgov.gov/p/eur/ankara/ 
 
WILSON