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RECENT DEVELOPMENTS FROM AN ARMENIAN PUBLIC TV ANCHOR'S EYES
By Emre Uslu & Onder Aytac
Today's Zaman, Turkey
Sept 9 2008
Today we would like to leave our column to Artak Aleksanyan to share
his observations about Saturday's football game between Turkey and
Armenia and its implications on Armenian society.
Aleksanyan is an Armenian journalist and the news anchor of Armenia's
public TV station. Before the game we asked Aleksanyan to write down
his observations about what the Armenian people feel about the game
and developments that seem to be opening a new chapter between Turkey
and Armenia. This is what Aleksanyan had to say: A week without ...
... a miracle
Sunday, 10 p.m.: I have been trying to reach any one of the Armenian
experts on Turkey the whole day. It seems that no one is able to talk
about Turkish President Abdullah Gul's visit to Armenia. Everyone --
literally everyone -- is discussing the Armenia-Turkey game. Everyone
is mad and angry at the Armenian team; we were expecting more. We
knew that Turkey's team is one of the best in the world, but you
cannot help but have hope or dream for a victory. It is said the
difference between an optimist and a pessimist is that a pessimist
is a well-informed optimist. I think last Saturday all Armenians who
watched football were well-informed romantics.
... bad Turkey
It has been a week about Turkey: We used to talk about our neighbor
only when we needed to talk about genocide. Last week was the first
one in which news was about cooperation, regional security and the
Caucasian stability platform that was recently suggested by the Turkish
prime minister. We were trying to present the very diverse opinions on
Gul's visit and the Armenia-Turkey relationship but somehow ended up
summarizing only two sides: Everyone is actually a proponent of the
normalization of the Armenian-Turkey relationship -- the only party
that is still suspicious about that is Dashnakcutyun. Even radical
opposition leader and first Armenian President Levon Ter-Petrosyan
supported current Armenian President Serzh Sarksyan in inviting Gul
to watch the football match.
... information
What can we expect from Turkey besides genocide? Are we ready to
establish a normal relationship? Are ordinary Turks friendly? Do they
hate Armenians? Will they kill Armenians? Will they invade Armenia
if we open the border? Are our products economically ready to compete
with the prices and quality of those made in Turkey?
I know that for Turks those questions may be very amusing, simplistic
and sometimes very offensive. A Turkish friend of mine once said:
"We are polite and civilized people. But how should I know about
that when for the last 100 years not only the borders were closed but
also the flow of information. Ordinary Armenians do not know anything
about Turkey. They know that Turks killed 1.5 million Armenians 100
years ago, but they do not know modern Turks."
Yes, there are some Armenians who come to Turkey for work and trade,
but they usually speak about money and the market, not about culture
and society. So, if we are going to establish or re-establish normal
relations, before that, there should be a campaign to raise awareness
about the two countries: simple, human stories about people who live,
work, fall in love, get married.
... an agenda
Do the presidents of both countries need to normalize relations? I
think so. For Turkey, an open border with Armenia is a very good point
for its EU membership ambitions. For Armenia, our government is stuck
between the West and Russia. We can't move anymore. One step toward
any of those will signal danger from another side. Russia is now a
very jealous and angry "strategic partner." The West is too polite
and slow during a crisis situation. So, the move toward Turkey will
be the right one. It would move our foreign policy in a new direction
and open new opportunities for business.
However, this has been the first week in which top-officials spoke
about each other without antagonism. The Armenian president met with
Armenian diplomats last week and said everything should be done to
convince the international community and Turkey of how important a
Gyumri-Kars railway is. For the first time, the Turkish president
did not ignore the existence of Armenia when talking about regional
cooperation in the Caucasus.
So, the only question is, how long will this Turkish-Armenian "game"
last? Will it continue? And I don't mean the next football game.
I have started to learn Turkish in the US while working on my M.A. in
communications. I feel that in the very near future I may need it.
*Dr. Emre Uslu is an analyst working with the Washington-based think
tank Jamestown Foundation. Onder Aytac is an associate professor at
Gazi University's department of communications and works with the
Security Studies Institute in Ankara.
By Emre Uslu & Onder Aytac
Today's Zaman, Turkey
Sept 9 2008
Today we would like to leave our column to Artak Aleksanyan to share
his observations about Saturday's football game between Turkey and
Armenia and its implications on Armenian society.
Aleksanyan is an Armenian journalist and the news anchor of Armenia's
public TV station. Before the game we asked Aleksanyan to write down
his observations about what the Armenian people feel about the game
and developments that seem to be opening a new chapter between Turkey
and Armenia. This is what Aleksanyan had to say: A week without ...
... a miracle
Sunday, 10 p.m.: I have been trying to reach any one of the Armenian
experts on Turkey the whole day. It seems that no one is able to talk
about Turkish President Abdullah Gul's visit to Armenia. Everyone --
literally everyone -- is discussing the Armenia-Turkey game. Everyone
is mad and angry at the Armenian team; we were expecting more. We
knew that Turkey's team is one of the best in the world, but you
cannot help but have hope or dream for a victory. It is said the
difference between an optimist and a pessimist is that a pessimist
is a well-informed optimist. I think last Saturday all Armenians who
watched football were well-informed romantics.
... bad Turkey
It has been a week about Turkey: We used to talk about our neighbor
only when we needed to talk about genocide. Last week was the first
one in which news was about cooperation, regional security and the
Caucasian stability platform that was recently suggested by the Turkish
prime minister. We were trying to present the very diverse opinions on
Gul's visit and the Armenia-Turkey relationship but somehow ended up
summarizing only two sides: Everyone is actually a proponent of the
normalization of the Armenian-Turkey relationship -- the only party
that is still suspicious about that is Dashnakcutyun. Even radical
opposition leader and first Armenian President Levon Ter-Petrosyan
supported current Armenian President Serzh Sarksyan in inviting Gul
to watch the football match.
... information
What can we expect from Turkey besides genocide? Are we ready to
establish a normal relationship? Are ordinary Turks friendly? Do they
hate Armenians? Will they kill Armenians? Will they invade Armenia
if we open the border? Are our products economically ready to compete
with the prices and quality of those made in Turkey?
I know that for Turks those questions may be very amusing, simplistic
and sometimes very offensive. A Turkish friend of mine once said:
"We are polite and civilized people. But how should I know about
that when for the last 100 years not only the borders were closed but
also the flow of information. Ordinary Armenians do not know anything
about Turkey. They know that Turks killed 1.5 million Armenians 100
years ago, but they do not know modern Turks."
Yes, there are some Armenians who come to Turkey for work and trade,
but they usually speak about money and the market, not about culture
and society. So, if we are going to establish or re-establish normal
relations, before that, there should be a campaign to raise awareness
about the two countries: simple, human stories about people who live,
work, fall in love, get married.
... an agenda
Do the presidents of both countries need to normalize relations? I
think so. For Turkey, an open border with Armenia is a very good point
for its EU membership ambitions. For Armenia, our government is stuck
between the West and Russia. We can't move anymore. One step toward
any of those will signal danger from another side. Russia is now a
very jealous and angry "strategic partner." The West is too polite
and slow during a crisis situation. So, the move toward Turkey will
be the right one. It would move our foreign policy in a new direction
and open new opportunities for business.
However, this has been the first week in which top-officials spoke
about each other without antagonism. The Armenian president met with
Armenian diplomats last week and said everything should be done to
convince the international community and Turkey of how important a
Gyumri-Kars railway is. For the first time, the Turkish president
did not ignore the existence of Armenia when talking about regional
cooperation in the Caucasus.
So, the only question is, how long will this Turkish-Armenian "game"
last? Will it continue? And I don't mean the next football game.
I have started to learn Turkish in the US while working on my M.A. in
communications. I feel that in the very near future I may need it.
*Dr. Emre Uslu is an analyst working with the Washington-based think
tank Jamestown Foundation. Onder Aytac is an associate professor at
Gazi University's department of communications and works with the
Security Studies Institute in Ankara.