ACCORDING TO ARTUR AGHABEKIAN, ARMENIA IS OBLIGED TO COOPERATE WITH TURKEY IN INTERNATIONAL SECURITY SPHERE
Noyan Tapan
Dec 20 2007
YEREVAN, DECEMBER 20, NOYAN TAPAN. Armenia is obliged to cooperate
with Turkey within the framework of European security and NATO. Artur
Aghabekian, the Chairman of the RA NA Standing Committee on Defence,
National Security, and Internal Affairs, stated in his speech at the
parliamentary hearings on the subject "Armenian-Turkish Relations:
Problems and Prospects" on December 20.
He said that Turkey and Armenia are among the states, which have
signed two agreements, Conventional Armed Forces in Europe Treaty
and Vienna Agreement.
Every year Turkey uses the possibility of holding inspection of the
quantity of Armenian armed forces and armaments given to it by the
agreements. And Armenia, which has a right to hold such an inspection
in Turkey twice a year, has used that possibility only once so far.
The two countries also cooperate within the framework of NATO programs,
in particular, Partnership for Peace program. Until 2004 Armenia-NATO
cooperation had been carried out under the Izmir’s South-East joint
command and the responsible person for the link carrying out Armenia’s
partnership with NATO is a Turkish officer. According to A. Aghabekian,
Turkish officers are always involved in delegations visiting Armenia
within the framework of the cooperation. In his words, Turkey is
greatly interested in periodically visiting Armenia within the
framework of this cooperation and showing its readiness to assist
the latter.
According to A. Aghabekian, though Armenia has always received
invitations, it has limited its participation in events held in
Turkey. Nevertheless, the Head of the General Headquarters of Armenian
Armed Forces as a guest has taken part in the Allied Action Exercise
of NATO in Turkey. The Armenian party has taken part in the computer
exercise held in Turkey.
A. Aghabekian said that Turkey has never used the right of veto
to exclude Armenia’s participation in NATO events. In connection
with Armenia’s joining the 2004 Planning and Review Process and
2005 Individual Partnership Action Plan Turkey had threatened to
use the right of veto if in its introduction document Armenia does
not reconsider the formulations connected with Turkey and NKR. As
a result of some concessions by the Armenian party and pressure of
other NATO member-countries, Turkey in the future had to adopt the
presented documents "by the principle of silence."