ANKARA TO BAKU, YEREVAN: DON’T MISS WINDOW OF OPPORTUNITY

Today’s Zaman
Nov 21 2008
Turkey

A window of opportunity that recently opened up in the region should
be used by Armenia, Azerbaijan and Turkey without losing time, Foreign
Minister Ali Babacan said yesterday, warning that this opportunity
should not be wasted.

Babacan, speaking at a joint press conference following his talks with
visiting Romanian Foreign Minister Lazar Comanescu, was asked about
the agenda of his upcoming bilateral meeting with Armenian Foreign
Minister Eduard Nalbandian, scheduled to take place when Nalbandian
comes to Ä°stanbul on Monday to attend a meeting of the Organization
of the Black Sea Economic Cooperation (BSEC).

"Our goal along the process of dialogue is full normalization. However,
there is a need for mutual steps to reach that point," he said,
while noting that talks between Armenia and Azerbaijan and talks
between Armenia and Turkey have been assumed on two separate lines.

Armenia is the current holder of the BSEC presidency. Babacan and
Nalbandian had three-way talks together with Azerbaijani Foreign
Minister Elmar Mammadyarov in September to discuss the Nagorno-Karabakh
dispute.

Babacan said he has learned about the positive results of a meeting
between the Azerbaijani and Armenian presidents, hosted in Moscow
earlier this month.

"There is a new climate in the region for the resolution of
problems. This is an important window of opportunity. However, I
believe that this window of opportunity should be used positively,"
he added. "All parties should rush for the rapid normalization of
relations both between Armenia and Azerbaijan and between Turkey and
Armenia — while this window of opportunity is still open."

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