SERZH SARGSYAN: TURKEY MUST BE THE FIRST TO MAKE STEPS
news.am
Feb 25 2010
Armenia
RA President Serzh Sargsyan did not have a meeting with Turkish
Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu in Kiev, the RA presidential press
service told NEWS.am, commenting on Turkish media reports.
Both the Armenian President and the Turkish FM attended the
inauguration ceremony of Ukrainian President Victor Yanukovich in
Kiev. During a reception, the Ahmet Davutoglu approached the Armenian
President and exchanged views with him.
Serzh Sargsyan stressed that progress requires political will, and
Armenia believes that the present process has to be brought to its
logical end within the shortest period of time. Otherwise, Armenia will
have to withdraw its signature from the Armenian-Turkish protocols. The
Armenian President stated once again that Turkey can by no means be
involved in the Nagorno-Karabakh peace process, as it is rendering
unilateral military assistance to one of the conflicting parties,
Azerbaijan, making regular biased statements on the settlement process.
"A country dreaming of a region without borders must be the first to
make steps and lift the blockade of Armenia, which will enable the
reopening of the region’s communication infrastructures. Azerbaijan’s
pressure may prevent the Turkish Parliament from ratifying the
protocols, but nothing prevents the Turkish Executive — even before
the protocols have been ratified — from reopening the mutual border,
which it closed before," the Armenian leader said.