Interfax, Russia
Sept 4 2008

U.S. diplomat welcomes Turkish president’s visit to Armenia

YEREVAN Sep 4

U.S. charge d’Affaires in Yerevan Joseph Pennington has hailed the
establishment of contacts between Armenia and Turkey.

The United States welcomes Armenian President Serzh Sargsyan’s
decision to invite his Turkish counterpart Abdullah Gul to Yerevan and
is glad that the Turkish president accepted the invitation, Pennington
told Interfax on Thursday.

This visit is particularly welcome considering the current tensions in
the Caucasus and will be a good example of how regional leaders can
handle problems independently, he said.

For a long time, the United States has encouraged Armenia and Turkey
to take steps towards trust-building and reconciliation, the diplomat
said.

Gul, who will arrive Yerevan on September 6 to attend a football match
between the Armenian and Turkish national teams, will become the first
Turkish head of state to visit Armenia. He received an invitation for
the match from the Armenian president in August.

Meanwhile, Armenia and Turkey have no diplomatic relations. The
Armenian-Turkish border has been closed since 1993 at Ankara’s
initiative.