ARMENIA WANTS GOOD-NEIGHBOR RELATIONS WITH AZERBAIJAN, TURKEY: PM
Trend News Agency
Jan 14 2009
Azerbaijan
Yerevan says Armenia wants good-neighbor relations with all countries,
including Azerbaijan and Turkey.
"Armenia wants to continue talks and maintain good-neighbor relations
with Turkey and Azerbaijan," Armenian Prime Minister Tigran Sarkisyan
said in an interview with Interfax . "We should be able to establish
good relations with both these countries."
"Talks with our Turkish counterparts are very efficient, and
Armenian-Turkish relations are seeing great progress," he said. "I
think establishing diplomatic relations with Turkey is very realistic."
"In terms of opening our borders… it is not bad to open one’s borders
once you have sound political and economic ties with your neighbor,"
he said.
The Armenian-Turkish borders are closed due to Armenia’s territorial
claims against Azerbaijan and demands that Turkey recognize the
so-called "Armenian Genocide."
Armenia says talks to solve the Armenian-Azerbaijani conflict are
admissable.
The conflict between the two South Caucasus countries began in 1988
when Armenia made territorial claims against Azerbaijan. Armenian armed
forces have occupied 20 percent of Azerbaijan since 1992, including
the Nagorno-Karabakh region and 7 surrounding districts. Azerbaijan
and Armenia signed a ceasefire agreement in 1994. The co-chairs of
the OSCE Minsk Group – Russia, France, and the U.S. – are currently
holding the peace negotiations.
Sarkisyan said the U.S. considers the current talks efficient and
supports the OSCE Minsk Group. There is full understanding between
the U.S. and Russian co-chairs, he added.
"It means that the U.S., Russian and French co-chairs consider
the current talks acceptable and efficient, and I think we should
agree with these assessments as they meet our estimations as well,"
Sarkisyan said.