Large-scale war over Karabakh not in Turkey’s interests – ARF-D politician

A large-scale war over Nagorno-Karbakh would not be in Turkey’s interests at the moment as a confrontation with Azerbaijan (which may also involve Armenia) might require intervention also by other states, including Russia, according to Giro Manoyan, the political affairs director of the Armenian Revolutionary Federation-Dashnaksutyun (ARF-D).

“Turkey may offer its assistance at certain points to keep the Azerbaijani leader in a good frame of mind so to speak, but I don’t think a large-scale war would be in Turkey’s interests,” he told a news conference on Tuesday.

The politician made the remark as he addressed the recent regional developments and several countries’ move to sever diplomatic ties with Qatar. Manoyan said he positively evaluates Armenia’s decision to meet the country half-way and deepen the relations. 

He also commented upon the situation in Syria. “The developments around Syria underlie the deepened tension among the Arab countries. The moment has arrived for the Arab states to eventually decide what they are going to do with respect to Syria,” he said, noting that superpowers’ involvement in the Syrian crisis signals the regional if not global (vs domestic) significance of the problems in the country.

“The end to the crisis in Syria is visible,” he said, ruling out the possibility of a higher tension over the country.