US WELCOMES ARMENIA-TURKEY NORMALIZATION PLAN
Agence France Presse
September 1, 2009 Tuesday 3:33 AM GMT
The United States late Monday welcomed the plan by Armenia and Turkey
to establish diplomatic ties, saying it was "ready to work closely"
with both sides in support of improved relations.
"The United States warmly welcomes the joint statement made today
by Turkey and Armenia," said State Department spokesman Ian Kelly,
referring to the plans to establish diplomatic relations and re-open
their border in a bid to end decades of mutual distrust and resentment.
"It has long been and remains the position of the United States that
normalization should take place without preconditions and within a
reasonable timeframe," Kelly said in a statement.
"We remain ready to work closely with both governments in support
of normalization, a historic process that will contribute to peace,
security and stability throughout the region."
The two countries have a long history of hostility rooted in massacres
of Armenians under the Ottoman Turks during World War I.
Ankara and Yerevan said they would hold six weeks of domestic
consultations before signing two protocols on establishing diplomatic
ties and developing bilateral relations.
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress
