Today’s Zaman, Turkey
Feb 6 2010

ATC warns Turkey will be blamed if talks with Armenia fail

Turkey will be the party that circles in Washington will hold
responsible if efforts by Ankara and Yerevan to normalize their
relations fail, James Holmes, a retired US ambassador and the
president and chief executive officer of the American-Turkish Council
(ATC), has said.

After months of Swiss mediation and US encouragement, Turkey and
Armenia signed two protocols in October 2009 to re-establish
diplomatic ties and reopen their shared border. However, the process
hit rocky ground after an Armenian court upheld the legality of the
protocols but underlined that they could not contradict Yerevan’s
official position that the alleged Armenian genocide must be
internationally recognized.

Holmes, speaking with the Anatolia news agency in Washington, said he
was `hopeful, however, also concerned,’ regarding the course of
affairs in Turkey-Armenia normalization.

Holmes said everybody’s concerns will disappear if the parliaments of
both countries ratify the protocols, Anatolia reported on Friday.

`I know Washington’s history concerning this issue. Even if Turkey is
no guiltier than Yerevan, the political climate in Washington will
mean that Turkey will be held responsible for any failure. This
concerns me,’ Holmes was quoted as saying by the agency.

`Therefore, we should be very careful and prepare in case of a
negative course of events,’ he said.

06 February 2010, Saturday
TODAY’S ZAMAN ANKARA