ANKARA KEEN ON MEDIATING GARABAGH CONFLICT SETTLEMENT

AzerNews Weekly
Sept 17 2008
Azerbaijan

Turkish Foreign Minister Ali Babacan intends to discuss the Upper
(Nagorno) Garabagh conflict with his Armenian and Azerbaijanian
counterparts in late September.

"The Garabagh conflict is also Turkey`s problem," Babacan said,
stressing that while in Yerevan, he had forwarded to the Armenian
foreign minister a proposal on arranging a meeting of the three
countries` foreign ministers, and the initiative was accepted.

"After meeting my Azerbaijani counterpart and inquiring about his
views, we will be able to hold such a meeting on the sidelines of
the UN session," he told a local television channel.

Babacan stressed that peace talks are expected to intensify after
Azerbaijan`s October 15 presidential election.

The 63rd session of the UN General Assembly began in New York on
Tuesday.

The Garabagh conflict will be discussed by Turkish and Armenian
Presidents Abdullah Gul and Serzh Sarkisian on the sidelines of the
session, CNN Turk TV channel said. Given that the meeting will be
held shortly before elections in Azerbaijan, President Ilham Aliyev
will not be able to attend, the report said.

In reference to Turkish-Armenian relations, Babacan said outstanding
differences cannot be unilaterally ironed out.

Armenian Foreign Minister Eduard Nalbandian has told CNN Turk that if
efforts are being made to normalize ties between Ankara and Yerevan,
no pre-conditions should be set.

"If we seriously and sincerely want to make amends, we should not talk
about any conditions, as restoring relations between Turkey and Armenia
would benefit both countries. Peace should not be expected in the
region until the Ankara-Yerevan relations are rectified, because a full
integration of the region is impossible with the border being closed."

The presidents of Turkey and Armenia attended a soccer match together
in the Armenian capital on Saturday. Yerevan called the accompanying
talks an opportunity to forge ties with the neighboring country.

Armenia and Turkey have been at odds and the border between the two
countries has been closed since 1993 on Ankara`s insistence due to
Armenia`s policy of occupation of Azerbaijan territory and its claims
that Ottoman Turks committed mass killings in the early 20th century.

Nalbandian pledged that if Turkish-Armenian relations normalize,
Armenia will not put forth its "genocide" claims and all unresolved
issues would be solved through negotiations.

Yury Merzlyakov, Russian co-chair of the OSCE Minsk Group (MG),
a team of US, Russian and French diplomats brokering Garabagh peace
talks, has confirmed that Turkish, Azerbaijani and Armenian foreign
ministers are due to meet. He said, however, that the date of the
meeting has not been scheduled.

Merzlyakov said the possibility of such a ministerial meeting was
discussed by the Azerbaijani and Armenian ministers during their
meeting in Moscow on August 1.

"The three ministers` meeting is a good idea and the co-chairs would
only welcome that," the diplomat said.

He emphasized that it was wrong to cite possible changes in the format
of peace talks. "Turkish President Abdullah Gul`s mediation [of talks]
between the Azerbaijani and Armenian leaders could be beneficial for
the resolution of the Garabagh conflict."

Merzlyakov added that the MG co-chairs are expected to visit the
region soon.

Meanwhile, the Armenian opposition expressed concern over Turkey`s
actively joining peace talks, claiming that Ankara`s assuming a
mediating role in the peace process has raised eyebrows. It further
maintained that Turkey`s mediation is unacceptable, given that the
country is Azerbaijan`s closest ally.

The conflict between the two South Caucasus republics reared up
in the late 1980s due to Armenia`s territorial claims. Armenia has
been occupying over 20% of Azerbaijan`s internationally recognized
territory since the early 1990s. Years of peace talks have brought
few tangible results. Azerbaijani officials have repeatedly warned
against Armenia`s policy of aggression, saying the country`s land
will be freed at any cost.