ARMENIA INTENDS TO CONTINUE ITS INITIATIVES AIMED AT NORMALIZING ARMENIAN-TURKISH RELATIONS

Noyan Tapan

Ju ly 30, 2008

YEREVAN, JULY 30, NOYAN TAPAN. RA President Serzh Sargsyan’s visit to
the Ukraine proceeded in a constructive and meaningful atmosphere:
a meeting between the two countries’ Presidents proceeded in a very
warm atmosphere and lasted more than 2.5 hours, during which bilateral
relations in different spheres were discussed. RA Foreign Minister
Edward Nalbandian said at the July 30 press conference.

He also attached importance to the participation of the RA President
and Catholicos of All Armenians in the ceremony dedicated to the 650th
anniversary of the Surb Khach Armenian Church Complex in the Crimea.

According to E. Nalbandian, it was a historic event, as for the first
time the head of Armenian state and its spiritual leader together
visited that complex.

The Foreign Minister said that he paid his first visit to Karabakh,
with the leadership of which all issues regarding the settlement
process are constantly discussed. The RA and NKR Foreign Ministers
also had meetings in Strasbourg and Saint Petersburg.

According to E. Nalbandian, he paid a great number of visits over the
past 3.5 months, met with Foreign Ministers of a number of countries,
including Russia, the United States, France, Germany, and with heads
of international organizations. Visits to neighboring Georgia and
Iran are envisaged in September and to a number of countries of
CIS and Eastern Europe by the end of the year. Armenia will assume
chairmanship in CSTO from September, and in that connection a meeting
of organization’s member-countries’ Foreign Ministers will be held on
September 4 in Moscow, which will be followed by a summit. The Minister
said that he is leaving for Moscow straight after the press conference,
where he will also meet with the OSCE Minsk Group Co-chairs.

Answering the questions, the Foreign Minister said that the Armenian
authorities will never undertake a step that can encourage the
policy of denying the Armenian Genocide. "We wish to have normal
relations with our neighbor and to open the border at last," he
stated. E. Nalbandian said that the Armenian side’s latest initiatives
have been accepted very positively by the international community,
and Armenia is going to continue its initiatives aimed at normalizing
its relations with Turkey without preconditions put forward by the
Turkish side.