TURKEY MISSED ITS CHANCE WITH ARMENIA, FOREIGN MINISTER

Yerevan, February 07. ArmInfo. "Turkey misses its chance with Armenia,"
Vartan Oskanian, Minister of Foreign Affairs of Armenia, said in an
article published in the Los Angeles Times today.

"Hrant Dink’s assassination provided a key opportunity for Turkey to
mend relations with its neighbor. Ankara has let a rare moment pass.

Three weeks after the assassination of acclaimed Turkish Armenian
journalist Hrant Dink, it appears the Turkish authorities have
grasped neither the message of Hrant’s life nor the significance of
his death," V. Oskanian said. Armenian Foreign Minister pointed out
that, – "In the days immediately following Dink’s shocking death,
we in Armenia and others around the world wanted to believe that the
outpouring of public grief would create a crack in the Turkish wall
of denial and rejection, and that efforts would be made to chip away
at the conditions that made the assassination possible. We all hoped
that the gravity of this slaying and the breadth of the reaction
would have compelled Turkey’s leaders to seize the moment and make a
radical shift in the policies that sustain today’s dead-end situation."

"However, after those initial hints at conciliation, the message out
of Ankara has already changed. Last week, according to the Turkish
media, Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan said there can be
no rapprochement with Armenians because Armenians still insist on
talking about the genocide. The Prime Minister is right. Armenians
do insist on talking about the genocide. It’s a history-changing
event that ought not, indeed cannot, be forgotten. However, we also
advocate a rapprochement. And one is not a precondition for the other,"
V. Oskanian concluded.