BABACAN: GUL’S ATTENDANCE IN ARMENIA DEPENDS ON DEVELOPMENTS BETWEEN TWO COUNTRIES

PanARMENIAN.Net
16.07.2008 19:06 GMT+04:00

Turkish President Abdullah Gul’s attendance at a soccer match in
Armenia will depend on developments between the two countries,
Foreign Minister Ali Babacan said Wednesday.

Armenian President Serzh Sargsyan has invited Gul to visit Yerevan
for a soccer match in September, marking a shift in relations between
two states which have no diplomatic ties.

"Such a participation would depend on the developments ahead of the
match," Babacan said, without giving further details, Reuters reports.

Armenia and Turkey will play against each other in the Armenian capital
Yerevan on September 6 in a qualifying match for the 2010 FIFA World
Cup, scheduled to be held in South Africa.

Turkey broke diplomatic relations with Armenia over the Nagorno
Karabakh conflict and closed its border with the neighbor.

"The normalization of relations with Armenia is one of Turkey’s
serious foreign policy goals," said Babacan.

Turkey was among the first countries that recognized Armenia’s
independence after fall of the Soviet Union in 1991 but denies having
perpetrated Genocide against Armenians in 1915-23.

From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress