Tweet
TURKISH FM: NAGORNO-KARABAKH CONFLICT MUST BE RESOLVED TO NORMALIZE TURKEY-ARMENIA RELATIONS
Trend
Dec 29 2010
Azerbaijan
The Nagorno-Karabakh conflict must be resolved for the normalization of
the Turkey-Armenia relations, Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu
said in an interview with TRT.
"We want to normalize relations with Armenia and want them to be
sustainable. This requires the solution of frozen conflicts such as
Nagorno-Karabakh," Davutoglu said.
The conflict between the two South Caucasus countries began in 1988
when Armenia made territorial claims against Azerbaijan. Armenian
armed forces have occupied 20 percent of Azerbaijan since 1992,
including the Nagorno-Karabakh region and 7 surrounding districts.
Azerbaijan and Armenia signed a ceasefire agreement in 1994, while
the co-chairs of the OSCE Minsk Group, which includes Russia, France,
and the U.S., are currently holding the peace negotiations.
Armenia has not yet implemented the U.N. Security Council's four
resolutions on the liberation of the Nagorno-Karabakh and the
surrounding regions.
Regarding the issue of possible talks on resolving what was regarded
by some as the "Armenian genocide" in April at the U.S. House of
Representatives, Davutoglu said "people in Congress" who do not know
any substance and history are trying to put pressure on Turkey, adding
that Turkey does not want historical events to be used against it as
a weapon of blackmail.
"This issue should not loom as the "sword of Damocles" over Turkey's
relations with the United States," Davutoglu said.
The draft resolution recognizing the so-called "genocide" of Armenians
in the Ottoman Empire has repeatedly been presented for discussions
at the U.S. House of Representatives, but has not been adopted so far.
The resolution on the so-claimed "Armenian genocide" was approved
by the U.S. House of Representatives Committee on Foreign Affairs on
March 4, with twenty-three congressmen voting for the resolution and
22 against it. The vote opened the way for the measure possibly to
be considered by the full House.
Armenia claims that in 1915, the Turkish Ottoman Empire committed
"genocide" against the Armenians living in Anatolia.
From: A. Papazian
Trend
Dec 29 2010
Azerbaijan
The Nagorno-Karabakh conflict must be resolved for the normalization of
the Turkey-Armenia relations, Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu
said in an interview with TRT.
"We want to normalize relations with Armenia and want them to be
sustainable. This requires the solution of frozen conflicts such as
Nagorno-Karabakh," Davutoglu said.
The conflict between the two South Caucasus countries began in 1988
when Armenia made territorial claims against Azerbaijan. Armenian
armed forces have occupied 20 percent of Azerbaijan since 1992,
including the Nagorno-Karabakh region and 7 surrounding districts.
Azerbaijan and Armenia signed a ceasefire agreement in 1994, while
the co-chairs of the OSCE Minsk Group, which includes Russia, France,
and the U.S., are currently holding the peace negotiations.
Armenia has not yet implemented the U.N. Security Council's four
resolutions on the liberation of the Nagorno-Karabakh and the
surrounding regions.
Regarding the issue of possible talks on resolving what was regarded
by some as the "Armenian genocide" in April at the U.S. House of
Representatives, Davutoglu said "people in Congress" who do not know
any substance and history are trying to put pressure on Turkey, adding
that Turkey does not want historical events to be used against it as
a weapon of blackmail.
"This issue should not loom as the "sword of Damocles" over Turkey's
relations with the United States," Davutoglu said.
The draft resolution recognizing the so-called "genocide" of Armenians
in the Ottoman Empire has repeatedly been presented for discussions
at the U.S. House of Representatives, but has not been adopted so far.
The resolution on the so-claimed "Armenian genocide" was approved
by the U.S. House of Representatives Committee on Foreign Affairs on
March 4, with twenty-three congressmen voting for the resolution and
22 against it. The vote opened the way for the measure possibly to
be considered by the full House.
Armenia claims that in 1915, the Turkish Ottoman Empire committed
"genocide" against the Armenians living in Anatolia.
From: A. Papazian