Houston Chronicle

AP News in Brief at 5:58 p.m. EDT

© 2009 The Associated Press
Oct. 10, 2009, 5:20PM

Turkey, Armenia sign historic accord after last-minute talks to
salvage pact

ZURICH (AP) ‘ Turkey and Armenia signed a landmark agreement Saturday
to establish diplomatic relations and open their sealed border after a
century of enmity, as U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton
helped the two sides clear a last-minute snag.

The contentious issue of whether the killing of up to 1.5 million
Armenians during the final days of the Ottoman Empire amounted to
genocide is only hinted at in the agreement.

"There were several times when I said to all of the parties involved
that this is too important," Clinton said. "This has to be seen
through. We have come too far. All of the work that has gone into the
protocols should not be walked away from."

The Turkish and Armenian foreign ministers signed the accord in the
Swiss city of Zurich after a dispute over the final statements they
would make. In the end, the signing took place about three hours later
than scheduled and there were no spoken statements.

Clinton and mediators from Switzerland intervened to help broker a
solution, U.S. officials said on condition of anonymity, in keeping
with State Department regulations. Better ties between Turkey, a
regional heavyweight, and poor, landlocked Armenia have been a
priority for President Barack Obama, and Clinton had flown to
Switzerland to witness the signing, not help close the deal.