TURKISH MASS MEDIA: WHAT IS NOW EXPECTED IN ANKARA IS THAT OBAMA WILL REFER TO THE BREAKTHROUGH IN ONGOING RECONCILIATION TALKS IN HIS STATEMENT AND WILL REFRAIN FROM DECLARING THE EVENTS OF 1915 AS ‘GENOCIDE’

ArmInfo
2009-04-24 13:18:00

ArmInfo. In the eleventh hour before the US president decides what
vocabulary to employ in recognizing history, Turkey has agreed with
Armenia on which route to take toward reconciliation in the hope of
staving off the word ‘genocide.’ But the road before them presents
its own set of obstacles, not least of which is how Turkey finds a
way to keep Azerbaijan onside, Turkish Hyrriet says.

In a historic move, neighbors Turkey and Armenia have announced
an agreement on a framework to normalize ties, which could see the
establishment of diplomatic relations and a reopening of the border.

"The two parties have achieved tangible progress and mutual
understanding and they have agreed on a comprehensive framework for the
normalization of their bilateral relations in a mutually satisfactory
manner," read the statement released late Wednesday. It also said
both parties had determined a road map to reach this end.

Coming just before April 24 – the day that commemorates the mass
killings of Armenians in 1915 – the statement is an attempt to prevent
U.S. President Barack Obama from declaring the word "genocide" today
in a presidential statement about the World War I-era events. Ankara
has so far denied that an accord will be signed with Armenia amid
growing uneasiness in Azerbaijan.

What is now expected in Ankara is that Obama will refer to this
breakthrough in ongoing reconciliation talks in his statement and will
refrain from declaring the events of 1915 as "genocide", despite his
personal convictions to the contrary.