ARA PAPIAN: IN CASE OF WRONG DEVELOPMENT OF ARMENIAN-TURKISH RELATIONS ARMENIAN DIPLOMACY’S EFFORTS OF LAST 50 YEARS CAN BECOME EQUAL TO ZERO

Noyan Tapan

Se p 25, 2008

YEREVAN, SEPTEMBER 25, NOYAN TAPAN. U.S. President Woodrow Wilson’s
arbitrary decision on Armenian-Turkish state border is considered
especially important today, because if Turkey wishes to establish
normal relations with Armenia, it should undertake certain steps in
that direction. Ara Papian, the former Ambassador of Armenia to Canada,
stated in his September 25 interview to journalists. According to him,
Armenia showed initiative to start relations with Turkey since getting
independent, it is a different matter at what price these relations
should be established. "What should we sacrifice and what should we
receive? Diplomacy is very like medicine, therefore, steps undertaken
should be done by the principle "don’t do harm."

Turkey has already started to gain, but what have Armenians gained,
it is not clear," he said.

A. Papian said that he returned from New York the day before and
has an impression that Americans are surprised at the fact that
Armenian-Turkish relations are becoming warmer and why Armenians
make concessions. And American Armenians, according to A. Papian, are
indignant as such a step regards not only Armenia but also the whole
Diaspora. "In case of a wrong development of relations the efforts
of Armenian diplomacy of the last 50 years can become equal to zero,"
he mentioned.