US SUPPORTS THE PROCESS THAT WILL HOPEFULLY RESULT IN NORMALIZED RELATIONS BETWEEN TURKEY AND ARMENIA
armradio.am
03.03.2010 11:03
US supports the current process that will hopefully result in
normalized relations between Turkey and Armenia, US Assistant Secretary
Secretary of State Philip J. Crowley told a daily briefing.
"And within that process, as the Secretary said last week, we think
that there is ample room for Turkey and Armenia to evaluate the
historical facts as to what happened decades ago. So we haven’t
changed our view, but we continue to engage at a high level with
both countries and to encourage them – having worked to reach the
agreement in Switzerland last year to see it implemented on both
sides," Mr. Crowley stated.
Asked who’s correct – Turks or Armenian, teh Assistant Secretary said:
"The advancement of normalized relations between Armenia and Turkey
is in the interest of both countries. It’s in the interest of the
region as well. We cannot afford to look at this in zero sum terms,
that somehow scoring a point on one side is a loss for the other. The
Secretary has been directly involved extensively and repeatedly.
Deputy Secretary Steinberg, Under Secretary Burns, Assistant Secretary
Phil Gordon have all been directly engaged with the leadership in
Turkey and Armenia. The Secretary had a meeting with Prime Minister
Erdogan in Doha talking about this issue. We continue to encourage
both sides. We understand how difficult this is, how emotional this
is. There’s not a common understanding of what happened 90 years ago.
But we value the courageous steps that both leaders have taken, and
we just continue to encourage both countries to move forward and not
look backward."