PACE PRESIDENT’S AGENDA COULD SPELL TROUBLE FOR ARMENIA
ARA KHACHATOURIAN
Asbarez
Wednesday, May 12th, 2010
President of the Parliamentary Assembly of Council of Europe, Mevlut
Cavusoglu arrived in Yerevan Wednesday amid controversy because he
refused to visit Dzidzernagapert, forcing Armenian authorities to
change the nature of his trip from an "official" visit to that of a
"working" one and sparking a boycott of meetings by the Armenian
Revolutionary Federation.
Cavusoglu met with President Serzh Sarkisian, who expressed hope
that the PACE delegation visit would shape a more objective view of
Armenia and the challenges in the region.
"This visit will provide an opportunity to discuss issues on our
agenda, and I’m confident that it will contribute to the deepening of
cooperation between the Republic of Armenia and the Council of Europe,
particularly the cooperation between the Parliamentary Assembly of the
Council of Europe and the Armenian National Assembly," said Sarkisian.
The PACE President said "a close cooperation has been established with
the Armenian delegation to PACE." He also praised Armenia’s progress
in implementing democratic reforms and fighting corruption.
Cavusoglu said that as newly elected PACE President he prioritizes
the deepening relations between the Assembly and member states, and
excludes the use of double standards toward member states to ensure
an objective and balanced attitude toward everyone.
But is Cavusoglu sincere in his assertion of not applying
double-standards?
Upon his election, Cavusoglu, who is one of the founders of the ruling
Justice and Development Party in Turkey and has served in the Turkish
parliament since 2002, expressed his intention to reestablish the
PACE subcommittee on Nagorno-Karabakh, which has been dormant since
2008 after the death of its chairman, Russell Johnston.
However, soon after assuming the PACE presidency, Cavusoglu told the
Azeri APA news agency that "Karabakh is referred to as Azerbaijani
territory in all Council of Europe decisions."
"The Karabakh conflict is one of the most urgent issues in the region
and hinders the normalization of relations between Armenia and Turkey.
I’m saying this not because I’m a Turk, but because this is the truth,"
added Cavusoglu.
However, in a phone conversation with the Armenian Parliament Speaker
Hovik Abrahamian, Cavusoglu refuted the above statements, saying "it
was a result of bad translation and wrong perceptions in Azerbaijan."
In a later interview with the Turkish Haberturk TV, Cavusoglu discussed
the Armenian Genocide in the following manner: "Although Armenia
accuses us of committing genocide, it has no proofs of the fact,
since we have not perpetrated genocide. Armenians themselves have
perpetrated genocide in Khojaly and its history is still very fresh."
His statements before visiting Armenia, coupled with his insistence
on not going to Dzidzernagapert are enough to justify the ARF boycott
of the Cavusoglu visit to Yerevan.
"In effect, Mr. Cavusoglu is making no secret of the fact that he
is visiting Armenia not so much as the head of the PACE but as a
Turkish politician. Given these circumstances, our faction does not
find it appropriate to meet with him," said a letter sent by the ARF
parliamentary faction to Abrahamian Tuesday announcing the party’s
decision to boycott meetings with the visiting PACE leader.
Government sources confirmed that Cavusoglu informed the Armenian
authorities that he would not make the customary visits that all
foreign dignitaries make to Dzidzernagapert.
In an interview with RFE/RL’s Armenian service Tuesday, ARF
parliamentary faction president Vahan Hovannesian said: "Naturally,
Cavusoglu was always going to be a Turkish president [of the PACE]
and place Turkish interests above everything else," he said. "For no
Turkish politician has reached the level of European broad-mindedness
and will reach it in the foreseeable future."
In a customarily Turkish manner, by praising Armenia’s "progress
in implementing democratic reforms," Cavusoglu exonerated official
Yerevan of all of its past wrongdoings vis-a-vis the March 1 incidents
and gained free reign to govern PACE as he sees fit.
When the Armenian authorities agreed to change the format of the visit
at Cavusoglu’s insistence, they effectively gave the PACE president a
green light, instead of actively working to neutralize this dangerous
and politically-charged approach.
The so-called opposition and ruling parties’ naïvete in moving forward
with meetings plays right into the agenda that Cavusoglu is eager
to advance.