BORDER OPENING NOT TO BE PERCEIVED AS PRESENT TO ARMENIA
/PanARMENIAN.Net/
13.08.2009 18:23 GMT+04:00
/PanARMENIAN.Net/ "Border opening should not be perceived as award or
present to Armenia. That’s the least Turkey can do, so there’s no need
to praise the country for that," Richard Giragosyan, Head of Armenian
Center for Strategic and National Research, told today a seminar
devoted to "Armenian-Turkish relations: present and past". After
recent meeting between Russian and Turkish premiers, information was
spread that Turkey decided to open border to enable RA President to
visit the country for watching Armenia-Turkey football match.
"If that’s the only reason for opening border, Armenia will gain no
advantage of that," Giragosyan said.
Turkey’s statement in that regard is not only a spectacle for West
and US, but also a demonstration of freezing in Turkish-Azerbaijani
relations, something that is advantageous to Armenia. "Turkey is
no longer dependant on Azerbaijan. Moreover, normalization of ties
with Armenia doesn’t mean Ankara has finally decided to acknowledge
the historical truth. Turkey simply wants to show that it has more
influence in the region," the expert noted.
Giragosyan also shared impressions of his recent visit to
Istanbul. "Turkish side’s actions come to prove that the country has
no intention to open border," he said.
"The important thing in such case is overcoming borders in people’s
mentality," he noted, adding that recent talks on normalization of
ties has stirred up more frequent discussions over Armenian Genocide
in Turkish society.