TURKISH-ARMENIAN ACCORDS SIGNED AFTER LAST-MINUTE SNAG
Harry Tamrazian

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11.10.2009

Armenia and Turkey signed landmark agreements paving the way for the
normalization of their relations late on Saturday after a last-minute
dispute that threatened to derail their unprecedented rapprochement
welcomed by the international community.

The signing ceremony held in Zurich, Switzerland was delayed by more
than three hours, with Armenian Foreign Minister Eduard Nalbandian
apparently objecting to a statement that was due to be read out by
his Turkish counterpart Ahmet Davutoglu. The content of that statement
was not immediately known.

In the event, neither minister made any statements after sealing the
two Turkish-Armenian protocols in what appeared to be a compromise
arranged by U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton. She and
Nalbandian arrived at the University of Zurich, the ceremony venue,
in the same car.

The Armenian minister looked stern as he put pen to paper and shook
hands with a smiling Davutoglu in the presence of Clinton, the foreign
ministers of Switzerland, Russia and France as well as the European
Union’s foreign and security policy chief Javier Solana. Their
attendance underscored the strong support for the Turkish-Armenian
rapprochement shown by the world’s leading powers.

The signed protocols envisage the establishment of diplomatic relations
and reopening of the border between Armenia and Turkey within two
months of their entry into force. The documents need to be ratified
by the parliaments of the two neighboring states.

Speaking to journalists in Istanbul earlier on Saturday, Turkish
Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan gave fresh indications that his
government will not rush to reopen the border before a resolution
of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict that would satisfy Azerbaijan. "We
are in favor of developing relations with Armenia by protecting our
good intentions and in a way that will not hurt Azerbaijan," he said,
according to "Hurriyet Daily News."

In a televised address to the nation aired hours before the signing
ceremony, President Serzh Sarkisian warned Ankara against "dragging
out" the ratification process. "If Turkey does not ratify the protocols
within a reasonable time frame and fails to fulfill all of their
provisions within the defined period or breaches them in the future,
Armenia will not hesitate to take adequate steps corresponding to
international law," he said without elaborating.

Sarkisian also defended his conciliatory line on Turkey, insisting
that it has not split the Armenian people or driven a wedge between
Armenia and its worldwide Diaspora despite his critics’ claims to
the contrary. He again sought to disprove, line by line, their main
arguments against that policy and, in particular, their claims that
it has dealt a massive blow to efforts at greater international
recognition of the Armenian genocide.

"The genocide wound does not heal," said Sarkisian. "The memory of our
martyrs and the future of our generations require having a stable and
firm statehood, a powerful and prosperous country, a homeland that
embodies the dreams of all Armenians. We consider the establishment
of normal relations with all neighbors, including Turkey, one of the
important steps on that path."