TURKEY WELCOMES ARMENIAN, AZERI LEADERS’ MEETING IN PRAGUE

Anadolu Agency
May 8 2009
Turkey

Ankara, 8 May: Top Turkish diplomat said [on] Friday [8 May] his
country welcomed a meeting in Prague between Azeri and Armenian
leaders who were said to have agreed on "basic principles" concerning
the contested region of Upper Karabakh.

"I would like say that Turkey had welcomed with great pleasure the
progress the two leaders made in their talks in Prague. The important
thing is that peace and stability can be restored in the region,"
Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu told a joint press conference
with his Finnish counterpart in Ankara.

Azeri President Ilham Aliyev and his Armenian counterpart Serzh
Sargsyan reached an agreement [on] Thursday over "basic concepts of
peace" in the dispute, mediators of the Prague meeting said.

"For the first time, the presidents agreed on basic ideas," said
Matthew Bryza, a senior US diplomat in Minsk Group brokering the talks.

Davutoglu also called for concerted effort to encourage a settlement
in the shortest possible time, which he said would "set an example
in overcoming frozen disputes" in the region.

"We have always been in favour a settlement in the Karabakh dispute
within the confines of the international law and Azerbaijan’s
territorial integrity. Such a settlement will bring peace to the
Caucasus and it will present a model for resolving other frozen
disputes," Davutoglu said.

Armenia and Azerbaijan waged a six-year war over Upper Karabakh in
Azerbaijan. The region has been occupied by Armenia since a 1994
cease-fire but is internationally recognized as part of Azerbaijan.

Turkey cut all diplomatic ties with Yerevan after the occupation and
a border gate with its northeastern neighbour has remained closed
since then.

From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress