TURKISH LEADER’S PLANNED VISIT TO ARMENIA FUELS CONTROVERSY
AzerNews Weekly
Sept 3 2008
Azerbaijan
Turkish President Abdullah Gul is likely to visit Armenia at his
counterpart Serzh Sarkisian`s invitation in the coming days, reports
say, despite the lack of formal confirmation by Ankara.
Turkish officials stopped short of confirming the reports, though
Foreign Minister Ali Babacan said a group of diplomats is due to
leave Turkey for Yerevan shortly. The delegation will be headed by
the Foreign Ministry`s deputy undersecretary and Turkey`s former
ambassador in Baku, Unal Cevikoz.
President Sarkisian has invited his Turkish counterpart to attend a
2010 World Cup qualifying football match between the two countries`
national teams in Yerevan on Saturday. Yerevan sees the visit as a
good chance to forge ties between Armenia and Turkey.
The diplomats are to hold talks with Armenian officials on President
Gul`s planned visit as well as Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip
Erdogan`s recent proposal to set up a five-nation union called the
Caucasus Peace and Cooperation Platform, which followed a brief
war between Russia and Georgia last month. Turkey has already held
preliminary talks on the issue with Georgia and Azerbaijan.
Turkish officials have held secret meetings with their Armenian
counterparts in the past. In July, Cevikoz headed a delegation of
Foreign Ministry officials that held talks in Bern, Switzerland for
several days.
President Sarkisian is expected to receive the Turkish delegation,
reports say. During the meeting, the Turkish leader`s message will
be conveyed to the Armenian president. Additionally, Ankara will
underscore that good chances are emerging to defuse tension in
the volatile Caucasus region. Cevikoz is also expected to invite
Sarkisian to attend a football match between the two countries`
teams due in Istanbul.
Turkish officials insisted that no final decision has been passed on
the visit to Armenia. President Gul said Monday he had not decided yet
if he would visit Yerevan. Foreign Minister Babacan confirmed this
but added: "If the visit takes place, this will be done not because
Turkey is under pressure to do so, but in order to contribute to
peace and stability in the region."
Turkish media reported that Ankara has laid out five pre-conditions to
Yerevan for the visit to be materialized. Akhsham newspaper said the
demands include ensuring that no public protests will be held during
the visit and security will be properly provided. Turkish analysts
say that President Gul`s visit will not be announced until the last
minute given the tremendous importance of security.
Omer Lutem, head of the Armenian studies department at the Turkey-based
Eurasia Strategic Research Center, has told Radio Liberty that Ankara
has not specified the date and program of the visit in order not to
add an official nature to the visit.
According to Turkish newspapers, Gul is due to hold a brief meeting
with Sarkisian at the airport upon arrival, after which the two are
to head to the Razdan stadium to watch the football game.
Gul`s visit to Armenia has drawn divergent responses at
home. Opposition leader Deniz Baykal, who chairs Turkey`s Republican
People`s Party (CHP), said he would "favor going to Baku to watch the
match, not Yerevan." Meanwhile, 30 parliament members representing
Turkey`s ruling Justice and Development Party (JDP) have asked the
party leadership to grant permission for their trip to Yerevan to
watch the match. However, the party declined the request at its broad
meeting on Tuesday.
Omer Lutem said while commenting on the Turkish president`s planned
visit that his setting foot on Armenian soil would not solve all
outstanding problems between the two neighboring countries "but would
open a door for negotiations."
Lutem said the problems between Turkey and Armenia are
three-fold. First of all, Armenia is lobbying for Ankara`s recognition
of the Armenian genocide that allegedly happened in Ottoman Turkey
in the early 20th century. Secondly, the South Caucasus republic,
which has been independent for over a decade, has not yet formally
recognized Turkey`s territorial integrity and levels territorial
claims against its neighbor. Thirdly, Ankara calls on Yerevan to end
its policy of occupation against Azerbaijan.
The border between Armenia and Turkey has been closed since 1993.
Hrayr Tamrazian, head of Radio Liberty`s Armenia service, says that
Armenian nationalist Dashnaktsutyun party has announced it would hold
a peaceful rally in the capital on the day the football match will
be held. The party opposes establishing relations with Turkey due to
the differences over the alleged genocide and a territorial dispute.
Although Azerbaijan`s government has yet to formally respond to
President Gul`s intended visit, Azeris living in fraternal Turkey
have launched protests.
Azeri Turks living in the city of Izmir and adjacent regions are
against any dialog between Turkey and Armenia and have conducted a
signature collection campaign to counter this. The very first day of
the campaign was marked by activeness, with Turks joining the efforts
of Azeris. The document they have prepared will be submitted to the
Turkish government soon. It says that any cooperation with Armenia
is out of the question until it withdraws its armed forces from the
occupied territories of Azerbaijan and relinquishes its baseless
claims against Turkey.
"On the contrary, we should make an effort to protect and further
develop the historic friendship between Turkey and Azerbaijan,"
it said.