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Turkey says agreement reached with Armenia over roadmap

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  • Turkey says agreement reached with Armenia over roadmap

    The Examiner,
    June 20 2009


    Turkey says agreement reached with Armenia over roadmap to normalize
    strained ties


    By: SELCAN HACAOGLU (AP)


    06/20/09 6:20 PM EDT ANKARA, TURKEY ' Turkey and Armenia have agreed
    on a roadmap for normalizing relations and reaching reconciliation,
    the Turkish Foreign Ministry said Wednesday, but it wasn't immediately
    clear how they would tackle their bitter dispute over Ottoman-era
    killings of ethnic Armenians.

    Turkish officials would not discuss that issue and the ministry
    statement said only that the two countries had worked out a framework
    for reaching a solution that would satisfy both sides. There was no
    immediate comment from Armenia's government.

    Armenia says 1.5 million Armenians were slain by Ottoman Turks around
    the time of World War I in what Armenians and several other nations
    recognize as the first genocide of the 20th century. Turkey vehemently
    rejects the allegation, saying that the death toll was inflated and
    that Armenians died in civil unrest as the Ottoman Empire collapsed.

    The announcement came just weeks after President Barack Obama, during
    a visit to Turkey, called on his hosts to come to terms with the past,
    resolve its dispute with Armenia and reopen the border. The European
    Union has also put pressure on Turkey, which is seeking to join the
    bloc.

    Obama avoided the term "genocide" when he addressed Turkish
    lawmakers. But he said, in response to a question, that he had not
    changed his views on the question. As a presidential candidate, Obama
    said the killings amounted to genocide.

    His call on this U.S. ally and predominantly Muslim country heated up
    debate over what course Turkey should take in relations with
    Armenia. The government had already been working to improve ties with
    Armenia while facing deep-seated domestic antagonism toward its
    neighbor over the genocide charge.

    Turkey has long proposed to Armenia to establish a joint group of
    historians to study the bloodsheds, saying it has opened its archives
    for research.

    The accord was announced hours after U.S. Secretary of State Hillary
    Rodham Clinton praised what she described as bold reconciliation
    efforts between Turkey and Armenia.

    In its statement, the Foreign Ministration said the two nations "have
    recorded solid progress and reached mutual understanding to normalize
    ties in a way to satisfy both sides, agreeing on a comprehensive
    framework. Within this framework, a roadmap has been determined."

    Turkey wants its talks with Armenia to advance in parallel with
    negotiations between Armenia and Azerbaijan over disputed territory
    controlled by Armenia.

    Turkey closed its border with Armenia during that nation's conflict
    with Azerbaijan over the Nagorno-Karabakh region. Turkey backs
    Azerbaijan's claim to the disputed region, which has a high number of
    ethnic Armenian residents but lies within Azerbaijan's borders.

    Clinton said the United States had assured Azerbaijan it would
    intensify efforts to resolve the dispute.

    http://www.washingtonexaminer.com/world/ ap/48684807.html

    From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress
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