RUSSIA WILLING TO HELP ARMENIA-TURKEY RAPPROCHEMENT WITH INFRASTRUCTURE PROJECTS

PanARMENIAN.Net
14.01.2010 15:52 GMT+04:00

/PanARMENIAN.Net/ Russia is interested in Armenian-Turkish
reconciliation, with Moscow’s position on the issue remaining
unchanged, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said during a joint
news conference with his Armenian counterpart Edward Nalbandian.

"The earlier Armenian-Turkish relations are normalized, the more
benefits the entire region will reap," he noted. "We’re willing to
contribute to the process with infrastructure projects both Armenia
and Turkey are interested in. The projects may cover energy supply
or railway communication sectors."

Besides, Russian Foreign Minister stated that Moscow sees no link
between RA-Turkey rapprochement and Karabakh conflict settlement.

"Trying to artificially link the two issues is incorrect," Mr. Lavrov
stressed.

The Protocols aimed at normalization of bilateral ties and opening of
the common border between Armenia and Turkey were signed in Zurich
by Armenian Foreign Minister Edward Nalbandian and his Turkish
counterpart Ahmet Davutoglu on October 10, 2009, after a series of
diplomatic talks held through Swiss mediation.

The Nagorno Karabakh Republic (NKR) is a de facto independent republic
located in the South Caucasus, bordering by Azerbaijan to the north
and east, Iran to the south, and Armenia to the west.

After the Soviet Union established control over the area, in 1923
it formed the Nagorno Karabakh Autonomous Oblast (NKAO) within the
Azerbaijan SSR. In the final years of the Soviet Union, Azerbaijan
launched an ethnic cleansing which resulted in the Karabakh War that
was fought from 1991 to 1994.

Since the ceasefire in 1994, most of Nagorno Karabakh and several
regions of Azerbaijan around it (the security zone) remain under the
control of Nagorno Karabakh defense army.

Armenia and Azerbaijan have since been holding peace talks mediated
by the OSCE Minsk Group.

From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress