BAHCELI: PROTOCOL WITH ARMENIA AN UNUSUAL DIPLOMATIC MOVE
Today’s Zaman
Sept 4 2009
Turkey
Nationalist Movement Party (MHP) leader Devlet Bahceli harshly
criticized the government’s Armenian initiative in a written statement
he issued on Thursday. Accusing the government of yielding to Armenian
demands, Bahceli said "the domestic political consultation process is
an oddity with no precedent in diplomacy." He argued that Parliament
has no power to modify the protocols but rather "approve or reject it
altogether." He further pointed out that the government has negotiated
and accepted the protocols and showed its will to be bound by them
under domestic law by initialing them, making it no longer possible
to amend the protocols. "Their referral to Parliament for signatures
and ratification is the final stage under the Constitution. In this
regard, the prime minister’s comments that the protocols will not be
functional without Parliament’s approval are nothing but a statement of
the obvious and intend to create confusion in the minds and distract
attention from the shame. Parliament has no power to modify the
protocols. It will either approve or reject them," he said. Ankara
Today’s Zaman