US STEPS UP EFFORTS FOR NORMALIZATION TALKS

Hurriyet Daily News
Feb 4 2010
Turkey

U.S. Deputy Secretary of State James Steinberg is visiting the Caucasus
and Germany amid continuing diplomatic efforts to end intertwined
rows involving Armenia, Azerbaijan and Turkey.

Steinberg was expected to arrive in Yerevan on Thursday to meet
Armenian President Serge Sarkisian and Foreign Minister Edward
Nalbandian to "discuss bilateral and regional issues," the State
Department said.

Steinberg will then travel to Tbilisi for talks with Georgian President
Mikhail Saakashvili and representatives of Georgia’s opposition,
it said in a statement.

Secretary of State Hillary Clinton’s deputy will visit Germany on
Friday to attend the Munich Security Conference, the department’s
statement added.

"In Munich, he will meet with Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev and
Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu as well as other leaders
attending the conference," it read. The statement gave no details
about the talks in each city but the United States has been involved
in diplomatic efforts to resolve rows linking Turkey, Azerbaijan
and Armenia