TURKISH, AZERI, ARMENIAN MINISTERS TO MEET IN HELSINKI NEXT WEEK

Hurriyet
Nov 26 2008
Turkey

Turkish, Azeri and Armenian ministers would come together during a
meeting of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe
(OSCE) in Helsinki between Dec. 4-5 to discuss the settlement
of the Armenia-Azerbaijan conflict, Hurriyet daily reported on
Wednesday. (UPDATED)

Turkey’s Foreign Minister Ali Babacan and his Armenian counterpart
Eduard Nalbandian decided to continue the trilateral process which
began in New York in September, with another trilateral meeting in
the Finnish capital of Helsinki, Hurriyet wrote.

Babacan, Nalbandian and Azerbaijan’ Foreign Minister Elmar Mammadyarov
held a trilateral meeting in New York in September, and discussed
the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict.

Babacan confirmed late on Tuesday the decision made during his meeting
with Nalbandian, saying Turkish, Azeri and Armenian ministers might
come together during a meeting of the OSCE next week in Helsinki.

There is "busy diplomacy traffic" with Turkey’s eastern neighbor
Armenia, he told reporters before departing from the Turkish capital
for a tour of Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan.

"We have been moving ahead and making progress with Armenia each time
we talk to each other, and I hope talks between both Azerbaijan and
Armenia, and Turkey and Armenia could produce certain results in a
reasonable time," he was quoted by Anatolian Agency as saying.

"Our goal is to fully normalize relations between the countries of
the region and our efforts for a stability platform in the Caucasus
are continuing," he said.

Turkey proposed the establishment of a Caucasian Cooperation and
Stability Platform after August’s Russia-Georgia conflict in the
region.

TURKISH FM TO VISIT AZERBAIJAN Babacan will leave for Azerbaijan
on Nov. 30 upon an invitation by Mammadyarov, the Turkish Foreign
Ministry said on Wednesday.

The Turkish foreign minister is expected to discuss a possible
trilateral meeting in Helsinki with his Azerbaijan counterpart during
his two-day visit.

Babacan and Mammadyarov would also exchange views about putting
the Caucasus Stability and Cooperation Platform into practice, the
ministry also said.

The conflict between Azerbaijan and Armenia began in 1988 on Armenian
territorial claims over Azerbaijan.

Since 1992 Armenian Armed Forces have occupied 20 percent of Azerbaijan
including the Nagorno-Karabakh region and its seven surrounding
districts. Some 10 percent of the Azeri population was displaced
due to a series of bloody clashes both between and within the two
neighboring countries.

In 1994, Azerbaijan and Armenia signed a ceasefire agreement at which
time the active hostilities ended. The Co-Chairs of the OSCE Minsk
Group are currently holding peaceful negotiations.

Turkey and Armenia have no diplomatic ties and their border has
been closed for more than a decade over Armenia’s aggression over
Azerbaijan.