Turkey-Armenia relations boosted by president’s historic trip
President Abdullah Gul, the first Turkish leader to visit Armenia,
sounded upbeat that the two estranged neighbours could normalise
relations if they follow up on his historic trip, it was reported.

Sunday Telegraph/UK
Last Updated: 2:33PM BST 07 Sep 2008

Turkey and Armenia have no diplomatic ties and remain deeply divided
over the World War I deaths of Armenians under the Ottoman Empire, the
predecessor of Turkey. Their border has also been closed for more than
a decade.

"I believe my visit has demolished a psychological barrier in the
Caucauses," Gul was quoted as telling reporters on his plane while
returning from his trip to Yerevan for a football match.

"If this climate continues, everything will move forward and
normalise," he said, without elaborating.

Turkish and Armenian ties have for years been poisoned by Yerevan’s
claims that up to 1.5 million Armenians were systematically killed by
Ottoman Turks between 1915-1917 when their empire was falling apart.

Turkey rejects the allegation and says that 300,000-500,000 Armenians
and at least as many Turks died in civil strife when Armenians took up
arms for independence in eastern Anatolia and sided with invading
Russian troops.

But Gul said neither the dispute nor the closed border between the two
neighbours figured in his meeting with Armenian President Serzh
Sarkisian.

"He did not mention… the so-called genocide claims," Gul said.