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AZERI PRES REFUSES TO ATTEND ISTANBUL MEETING OVER TURKEY - ARMENIA THAW
Hurriyet
April 3 2009
Turkey
Azerbaijan's President Ilham Aliyev has refused to attend an
international meeting in Istanbul next week, a move that can be seen
as a protest against the prospect of the border being opened between
Armenia and Turkey, according to a report on Friday.
Aliyev has refused to accept an invitation to attend the Istanbul
meeting of the Alliance of Civilizations initiative aimed at fostering
dialogue between the West and Muslim countries, Azeri News Agency
APA reported.
Several leaders, including U.S. President Barack Obama, will attend
the summit co-chaired by Turkey and Spain on April 6-7.
The report said the refusal may also be connected with Aliyev's work
schedule, adding it is likely that Ankara's refusal to take a stance
on reports regarding the reopening of the borders between Turkey and
Armenia may be the main reason.
The rumors surrounding Aliyev's decision followed a report in the
Wall Street Journal suggesting that Turkey and Armenia have agreed
to open formal talks on a number of issues, including opening their
joint border, in a step towards the normalization of relations.
Turkey and Armenia have no diplomatic relations and their border
has been closed for more than a decade over Armenia's invasion of
20 percent territory of Azerbaijan - a frozen conflict legacy of the
Soviet Union called Nagorno-Karabakh.
Both countries have however been engaged in a normalization process
since Turkish President Abdullah Gul paid a landmark visit to Yerevan
last year to watch a World Cup qualifying football match between the
countries national teams.
Azeri officials had already expressed concerns over the prospect of the
border being reopened and some media reports suggested that Baku might
even go one step further in halting the sale of natural gas to Turkey.
Azeri officials say that opening the border before the withdrawal
of Armenian troops from the occupied territories of Azerbaijan would
run counter to country's national interests.
Hurriyet
April 3 2009
Turkey
Azerbaijan's President Ilham Aliyev has refused to attend an
international meeting in Istanbul next week, a move that can be seen
as a protest against the prospect of the border being opened between
Armenia and Turkey, according to a report on Friday.
Aliyev has refused to accept an invitation to attend the Istanbul
meeting of the Alliance of Civilizations initiative aimed at fostering
dialogue between the West and Muslim countries, Azeri News Agency
APA reported.
Several leaders, including U.S. President Barack Obama, will attend
the summit co-chaired by Turkey and Spain on April 6-7.
The report said the refusal may also be connected with Aliyev's work
schedule, adding it is likely that Ankara's refusal to take a stance
on reports regarding the reopening of the borders between Turkey and
Armenia may be the main reason.
The rumors surrounding Aliyev's decision followed a report in the
Wall Street Journal suggesting that Turkey and Armenia have agreed
to open formal talks on a number of issues, including opening their
joint border, in a step towards the normalization of relations.
Turkey and Armenia have no diplomatic relations and their border
has been closed for more than a decade over Armenia's invasion of
20 percent territory of Azerbaijan - a frozen conflict legacy of the
Soviet Union called Nagorno-Karabakh.
Both countries have however been engaged in a normalization process
since Turkish President Abdullah Gul paid a landmark visit to Yerevan
last year to watch a World Cup qualifying football match between the
countries national teams.
Azeri officials had already expressed concerns over the prospect of the
border being reopened and some media reports suggested that Baku might
even go one step further in halting the sale of natural gas to Turkey.
Azeri officials say that opening the border before the withdrawal
of Armenian troops from the occupied territories of Azerbaijan would
run counter to country's national interests.