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DAVUTOGLU: TURKEY PLACES IMPORTANCE ON NORMALIZATION OF RELATIONS WITH ARMENIA
Today's Zaman, Turkey
Oct 11 2013
11 October 2013 /TODAY'S ZAMAN, ANKARA
Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu said on Thursday that Turkey
attaches importance to its relations with Armenia and developing new
solutions for better ties, which have been cool over the 1915 events,
but stressed that for lasting relations, Armenia has to deal with
the problems in the South Caucasus and particularly those related
to Azerbaijan.
Speaking in Switzerland, where Turkey and Armenia signed twin protocols
in 2009 normalizing ties, after a meeting with Swiss Foreign Minister
Didier Burkhalter, Davutoglu pointed out that relations with Armenia
are important for Turkey and that Turkey is trying to find new ideas
and solutions to develop and cover more ground in the relations.
Davutoglu said Turkey will increase its studies for better ties with
its neighbor in the upcoming days. However, he stipulated that Armenia
should deal with the problems in the South Caucasus, particularly the
Nagorno-Karabakh problem, and should leave the Azerbaijani territories
it occupied.
A bloody conflict erupted between ethnic Azeris and Armenians in 1991
over Nagorno-Karabakh, a mountainous, predominantly Armenian-populated
enclave within Azerbaijani borders. Armenian-backed armed forces
seized 20 percent of Azerbaijani territories, killing 30,000 people.
In a display of solidarity with Azerbaijan on the Nagorno-Karabakh
issue, Turkey closed its borders with Armenia.
Saying that Turkey appreciates Switzerland's efforts to forge relations
between Turkey and Armenia, Davutoglu recalled the protocols of 2009,
which were the first written agreements between the two but which
failed after the two countries failed to ratify the documents.
Davutoglu said the protocols almost did not fail but that the two
countries were unable to find an opportunity to put these protocols
into practice because of the tension that increased in the region
after 2009 and a ruling of Armenia's Constitutional Court which said
the protocols "cannot be interpreted or applied in the legislative
process as they contradict the constitution and Declaration of
Independence of Armenia."
Davutoglu also discussed Nagorno-Karabakh with his counterpart as well
as the developments in the South Caucasus in Switzerland, which will
take the upcoming rotation of the presidency of the Organization for
Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) next year.
Davutoglu also spoke about the controversial monument to the victims
of the disputed genocide of 1915 that may open in Geneva in 2015,
the 100th anniversary of the 1915 events, and said that the building
of the monument had also been discussed in bilateral meetings, adding
that he had written two letters to his Swiss counterpart on the issue.
"We also discussed this issue in a friendly way and agreed to work
on a proper formula. They are aware of our concerns and determination
on this issue," he said.
The Middle East, the Balkans, cooperation in international
organizations and the G-20 summit that will be held in 2015 were
also among the issues on the agenda of the two foreign ministers,
according to Davutoglu.
Davutoglu mentioned developing ties between Turkey and Switzerland and
stated that the two countries have decided to sign a new strategic
cooperation agreement with a two-year action plan that will boost
relations.
After the studies on strategic cooperation that will be carried out
in the upcoming months, the two countries aim to reach an agreement
on the two-year action plan during an expected visit of the Swiss
foreign minister in the near future, Davutoglu said, describing the
process as very important for cooperation between the two countries.
The details of a framework agreement on cooperation in every field
but particularly regarding the economy and cultural activities will
become clearer during Burkhalter's visit.
http://www.todayszaman.com/newsDetail_getNewsById.action;jsessionid=F2D4E9BB3 7B3AF30C3DE91CEA2BA41B5?newsId=328768&columnistId= 0
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress
Today's Zaman, Turkey
Oct 11 2013
11 October 2013 /TODAY'S ZAMAN, ANKARA
Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu said on Thursday that Turkey
attaches importance to its relations with Armenia and developing new
solutions for better ties, which have been cool over the 1915 events,
but stressed that for lasting relations, Armenia has to deal with
the problems in the South Caucasus and particularly those related
to Azerbaijan.
Speaking in Switzerland, where Turkey and Armenia signed twin protocols
in 2009 normalizing ties, after a meeting with Swiss Foreign Minister
Didier Burkhalter, Davutoglu pointed out that relations with Armenia
are important for Turkey and that Turkey is trying to find new ideas
and solutions to develop and cover more ground in the relations.
Davutoglu said Turkey will increase its studies for better ties with
its neighbor in the upcoming days. However, he stipulated that Armenia
should deal with the problems in the South Caucasus, particularly the
Nagorno-Karabakh problem, and should leave the Azerbaijani territories
it occupied.
A bloody conflict erupted between ethnic Azeris and Armenians in 1991
over Nagorno-Karabakh, a mountainous, predominantly Armenian-populated
enclave within Azerbaijani borders. Armenian-backed armed forces
seized 20 percent of Azerbaijani territories, killing 30,000 people.
In a display of solidarity with Azerbaijan on the Nagorno-Karabakh
issue, Turkey closed its borders with Armenia.
Saying that Turkey appreciates Switzerland's efforts to forge relations
between Turkey and Armenia, Davutoglu recalled the protocols of 2009,
which were the first written agreements between the two but which
failed after the two countries failed to ratify the documents.
Davutoglu said the protocols almost did not fail but that the two
countries were unable to find an opportunity to put these protocols
into practice because of the tension that increased in the region
after 2009 and a ruling of Armenia's Constitutional Court which said
the protocols "cannot be interpreted or applied in the legislative
process as they contradict the constitution and Declaration of
Independence of Armenia."
Davutoglu also discussed Nagorno-Karabakh with his counterpart as well
as the developments in the South Caucasus in Switzerland, which will
take the upcoming rotation of the presidency of the Organization for
Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) next year.
Davutoglu also spoke about the controversial monument to the victims
of the disputed genocide of 1915 that may open in Geneva in 2015,
the 100th anniversary of the 1915 events, and said that the building
of the monument had also been discussed in bilateral meetings, adding
that he had written two letters to his Swiss counterpart on the issue.
"We also discussed this issue in a friendly way and agreed to work
on a proper formula. They are aware of our concerns and determination
on this issue," he said.
The Middle East, the Balkans, cooperation in international
organizations and the G-20 summit that will be held in 2015 were
also among the issues on the agenda of the two foreign ministers,
according to Davutoglu.
Davutoglu mentioned developing ties between Turkey and Switzerland and
stated that the two countries have decided to sign a new strategic
cooperation agreement with a two-year action plan that will boost
relations.
After the studies on strategic cooperation that will be carried out
in the upcoming months, the two countries aim to reach an agreement
on the two-year action plan during an expected visit of the Swiss
foreign minister in the near future, Davutoglu said, describing the
process as very important for cooperation between the two countries.
The details of a framework agreement on cooperation in every field
but particularly regarding the economy and cultural activities will
become clearer during Burkhalter's visit.
http://www.todayszaman.com/newsDetail_getNewsById.action;jsessionid=F2D4E9BB3 7B3AF30C3DE91CEA2BA41B5?newsId=328768&columnistId= 0
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress