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ARMENIA'S WITHDRAWAL FROM PROTOCOLS WILL NOT HALT PEACE ATTEMPTS BY TURKEY
Daily Sabah, Turkey
Feb 17 2015
AYÅ~^E Å~^AHIN
Turkey has said that it is determined to pursue peace efforts with
Armenia despite the latter's endeavors to keep relations strained,
a day after Armenian President Serzh Sargsyan said he has withdrawn
the landmark peace accords with Turkey from parliament.
"Turkey will remain committed to the normalization process it pursues
as the main purpose of the protocols," Foreign Ministry spokesman
Tanju Bilgic said, branding the step by Armenia "unfortunate" and
"wrong." Bilgic also added that the step was an apparent sign of
Armenia's inconsistent attitude over the protocols.
The two countries' then foreign ministers, Ahmet Davutoglu and Eduard
Nalbandyan, signed protocols to establish diplomatic ties between
their respective countries in 2009 in Switzerland. Mediated by the
U.S., the protocol had presupposed the opening of the border between
Turkey and Armenia but failed to be ratified.
Now, Armenia is citing the "preconditions" Turkey put in place, which
it says are against the purpose of the protocols, and has decided to
withdraw the protocols with Turkey from Parliament - a move deemed
by media outlets as a refusal to restore relations with Turkey.
The Turkish government has been exerting intense efforts to fix its
ties with Armenia, which have long been bitter due to conflicts between
the two countries. The leading conflict that has been threatening
any settlement between the duo is the inability to reach an agreement
over the 1915 incidents. Armenia demands they should be referred to
as genocide while Turkey maintains its stance of calling the events
deportation, during which it admits there were huge losses on part
of the Armenians.
However, Turkey reiterates its call to Armenia to reach a settlement
on the genocide claims by going deeper into the matter and searching
through historical sources, stipulating their impartiality.
President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has said over the last week that Armenia
has so far failed to reciprocate the peace offers delivered by Turkey,
but that Turkey will continue its efforts to reconcile regardless.
Meanwhile, experts say Armenia's recent decision to withdraw their
protocols with Turkey from Parliament, in the wake of the centennial
of the 1915 incidents, should not discourage Turkey from resuming
its efforts to thaw the sour relations with its neighbor, adding
that the move has had no additional adverse effects on the already
deteriorated relations.
Armenian journalist Markar Esayan, condoning Erdogan's remarks, said
such an approach should be retained no matter how harsh Armenia reacts
to the settlement offers. He stressed that Armenia is in a deadlock
and unable to act independently since it is in need of its diaspora's
support, and noted that improvements in the matter will advance slowly.
"A devoted patience, positive messages and cultural relations should
be continued no matter what to reach a resolution regarding the
problems with the two countries," Esayan said. "Harsh rhetoric [in
exchange for Armenia's lack of action in the name of restoring ties]
will only pave a path for those to exploit the centennial and result
in all the efforts thus far paid to go down the drain," he also added.
In an unprecedented move, then Prime Minister Erdogan extended
condolences to the grandchildren of the Armenians who lost their
lives in the 1915 events, which marked the beginning of efforts to
ease tensions over the incident.
Also within the past week, Erdogan has conveyed another message
highlighting that Turkey is ready to take a constructive and objective
approach to resolving the tensions between Armenia and Turkey due to
the 1915 incidents despite the objection of the Armenian diaspora.
In mid-January, the Turkish president sent invitation letters to
more than 100 leaders, including Sargsyan, to participate in the
commemoration of the Battle of Gallipoli on April 24.
Other than Armenia's demand for Turkey to officially accept the
Armenian claims of "genocide," the cause of tensions between the two
countries appears to be Turkey's closing its borders with Armenia in
reaction to the war in Nagarno-Karabakh and in support of its close
ally Azerbaijan in 1993.
The ties between Turkey and Azerbaijan are dependent not only on
brotherhood but also economic benefits on the part of both countries,
and this forces Turkey to side with Azerbaijan on the Nagarno-Karabakh
matter.
"Turkey cannot risk losing Azerbaijan, and is under the pressure of
the country," Esayan explained, which he says is the basis of the
political crisis between Turkey and Armenia.
http://www.dailysabah.com/diplomacy/2015/02/17/armenias-withdrawal-from-protocols-will-not-halt-peace-attempts-by-turkey
From: Baghdasarian
Daily Sabah, Turkey
Feb 17 2015
AYÅ~^E Å~^AHIN
Turkey has said that it is determined to pursue peace efforts with
Armenia despite the latter's endeavors to keep relations strained,
a day after Armenian President Serzh Sargsyan said he has withdrawn
the landmark peace accords with Turkey from parliament.
"Turkey will remain committed to the normalization process it pursues
as the main purpose of the protocols," Foreign Ministry spokesman
Tanju Bilgic said, branding the step by Armenia "unfortunate" and
"wrong." Bilgic also added that the step was an apparent sign of
Armenia's inconsistent attitude over the protocols.
The two countries' then foreign ministers, Ahmet Davutoglu and Eduard
Nalbandyan, signed protocols to establish diplomatic ties between
their respective countries in 2009 in Switzerland. Mediated by the
U.S., the protocol had presupposed the opening of the border between
Turkey and Armenia but failed to be ratified.
Now, Armenia is citing the "preconditions" Turkey put in place, which
it says are against the purpose of the protocols, and has decided to
withdraw the protocols with Turkey from Parliament - a move deemed
by media outlets as a refusal to restore relations with Turkey.
The Turkish government has been exerting intense efforts to fix its
ties with Armenia, which have long been bitter due to conflicts between
the two countries. The leading conflict that has been threatening
any settlement between the duo is the inability to reach an agreement
over the 1915 incidents. Armenia demands they should be referred to
as genocide while Turkey maintains its stance of calling the events
deportation, during which it admits there were huge losses on part
of the Armenians.
However, Turkey reiterates its call to Armenia to reach a settlement
on the genocide claims by going deeper into the matter and searching
through historical sources, stipulating their impartiality.
President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has said over the last week that Armenia
has so far failed to reciprocate the peace offers delivered by Turkey,
but that Turkey will continue its efforts to reconcile regardless.
Meanwhile, experts say Armenia's recent decision to withdraw their
protocols with Turkey from Parliament, in the wake of the centennial
of the 1915 incidents, should not discourage Turkey from resuming
its efforts to thaw the sour relations with its neighbor, adding
that the move has had no additional adverse effects on the already
deteriorated relations.
Armenian journalist Markar Esayan, condoning Erdogan's remarks, said
such an approach should be retained no matter how harsh Armenia reacts
to the settlement offers. He stressed that Armenia is in a deadlock
and unable to act independently since it is in need of its diaspora's
support, and noted that improvements in the matter will advance slowly.
"A devoted patience, positive messages and cultural relations should
be continued no matter what to reach a resolution regarding the
problems with the two countries," Esayan said. "Harsh rhetoric [in
exchange for Armenia's lack of action in the name of restoring ties]
will only pave a path for those to exploit the centennial and result
in all the efforts thus far paid to go down the drain," he also added.
In an unprecedented move, then Prime Minister Erdogan extended
condolences to the grandchildren of the Armenians who lost their
lives in the 1915 events, which marked the beginning of efforts to
ease tensions over the incident.
Also within the past week, Erdogan has conveyed another message
highlighting that Turkey is ready to take a constructive and objective
approach to resolving the tensions between Armenia and Turkey due to
the 1915 incidents despite the objection of the Armenian diaspora.
In mid-January, the Turkish president sent invitation letters to
more than 100 leaders, including Sargsyan, to participate in the
commemoration of the Battle of Gallipoli on April 24.
Other than Armenia's demand for Turkey to officially accept the
Armenian claims of "genocide," the cause of tensions between the two
countries appears to be Turkey's closing its borders with Armenia in
reaction to the war in Nagarno-Karabakh and in support of its close
ally Azerbaijan in 1993.
The ties between Turkey and Azerbaijan are dependent not only on
brotherhood but also economic benefits on the part of both countries,
and this forces Turkey to side with Azerbaijan on the Nagarno-Karabakh
matter.
"Turkey cannot risk losing Azerbaijan, and is under the pressure of
the country," Esayan explained, which he says is the basis of the
political crisis between Turkey and Armenia.
http://www.dailysabah.com/diplomacy/2015/02/17/armenias-withdrawal-from-protocols-will-not-halt-peace-attempts-by-turkey
From: Baghdasarian