KARS TASTES ‘CAUCASIAN CHEESE’
Turkish Daily News
Wednesday, July 2, 2008
Turkey
Caucasian cheese, produced in an effort to create a joint brand
by Georgia, Turkey and Armenia, hit the markets this week. An
advertisement stand, offering cheese to its Turkish customers, is
now open in the eastern city of Kars.
The idea of producing the yellow slab under the label of Caucasian
cheese was taken last year in the Caucasian Economic Forum in
Kars. Dairy producers from the Armenian city Gümrü and the Georgian
city Ninotsminda got together with Turkish producers in Kars and
discussed the project. The project was introduced by the British-based
magazine the Economist as â~@~symbolizing reconciliation between
Turkey and Armenia and the entire Caucasus region.â~@~]
Turkish İlhan Koçulu, Georgian Vanik Kazaryan and Armenian
Artus Mıkırtçyan gathered in a hotel in Kars to launch the
Caucasian cheese, daily Radikal reported. â~@~Our goal is not to
solve the problems between the governments, but rather to improve
relations between the communities,â~@~] said Mıkırtçyan. â~@~Why
cheese? Because delicious cheese is produced in Georgia, Turkey and
Armenia. Since cheese is the common language of these three cities,
we decided to produce the Caucasian cheese label,â~@~] he said.
â~@~Turkey and Georgia are economic partners. We believe that
via this project our relations will further improve,â~@~] said
Kazaryan. â~@~We want to eliminate prejudices and prove that we
can make trade. If what we do helps to solve political problems,
we will be more than happy,â~@~] said Mıkırtçyan.
Turk ey closed its border with Armenia in 1993 to protest the Armenian
forces’ occupation of the Nagorno-Karabakh region in the South
Caucasus, a de facto independent republic that is officially part
of Azerbaijan.
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