TURKISH AIRLINES PREPARES FOR CHARTER FLIGHTS TO YEREVAN
Today’s Zaman
Nov 24 2008
Turkey
In a move likely to contribute to the recent thaw in bilateral
relations between Armenia and Turkey, which gained momentum when
President Abdullah Gul visited Yerevan in September, Turkey’s national
airline company has been preparing to launch charter flights to the
Armenian capital.
Turkish Airlines (THY) has recently sent unofficial letters to both the
Directorate General of Civil Aviation (SHGM) and the Foreign Ministry,
asking for information regarding charter flights by Armenian national
air company Armavia from Yerevan to Ä°stanbul and the Mediterranean
coastal city of Antalya.
THY asked about the arrangements and agreements involving these
flights. In its response, the SHGM said the flights have been taking
place with the Foreign Ministry’s approval and that permission for
Armavia’s charter flights to Turkey is renewed every two or three
weeks. In the coming days, THY is expected to send another letter
to the Foreign Ministry asking whether launching charter flights to
Yerevan would "comply with the national interests" of the country. The
final decision will be made after receiving the Foreign Ministry’s
response outlining Ankara’s stance on the issue.
Currently, Atlasjet, a private Turkish airline company, has been
conducting charter flights between Ä°stanbul and Yerevan.
Turkey severed its ties with Armenia and closed its border
with the landlocked country in 1993 as a sign of solidarity with
Azerbaijan. There have been no formal ties between the two countries
since then, and Ankara says the normalization of relations depends on
Armenia’s withdrawal from Nagorno-Karabakh and an end to Yerevan’s
support for the Armenian diaspora’s efforts to win international
recognition for claims that Armenians were subjected to genocide at
the hands of the Ottoman Empire. Gul broke the ice when he visited
Yerevan to watch a soccer match between the two countries’ national
teams in early September. Gul invited Armenian President Serzh Sarksyan
to Turkey for the next game between the two countries’ teams next year.
As part of intensifying contacts between Armenia and Turkey, Armenian
Foreign Minister Eduard Nalbandian is scheduled to arrive in Ä°stanbul
today for a meeting of the Organization of the Black Sea Economic
Cooperation (BSEC). The Ä°stanbul BSEC meeting will also offer an
opportunity for a bilateral meeting between Nalbandian and his Turkish
counterpart, Ali Babacan. Babacan and Nalbandian had three-way talks
with Azerbaijani Foreign Minister Elmar Mammadyarov in September to
discuss the Nagorno-Karabakh dispute. While trying to re-establish
relations at the official level through meetings, Turkey has been
also making certain gestures that it hopes will eventually help to
normalize ties between the two estranged neighbors.
A senior Turkish official, speaking with Today’s Zaman, said THY has
been assuming an important role in Turkish foreign policy. Describing
THY as "an important tool of Turkey’s policy of strategic initiatives,"
the official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said the company
always requests the Foreign Ministry’s view when it prepares to launch
a new flight route abroad.
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