TURKEY TO PUSH INTERNATIONAL ACTORS FOR SWIFT MOVE ON KARABAKH
-to-push-international-actors-for-swift-move-on-ka rabakh/
Sep 2, 2009
ANKARA (Hurriyet)-Promising its closest ally Azerbaijan that it won’t
leave it in the lurch, Turkey will try to press influential countries
to let them push for a swift resolution on the Nagorno-Karabakh
conflict.
"To be able to turn this normalization [between Turkey and Armenia]
into permanent peace, we are expecting a forthwith settlement on
the dispute between Armenia and Azerbaijan with the contributions of
the international community," Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu told
reporters late Tuesday.
As stated in the joint statement issued by Turkey and Armenia, under
Swiss mediation, the two countries will complete internal political
deliberation on the signing of the two protocols for the establishment
of relations within six weeks. Then the two countries will have to
complete parliamentary ratification processes to let the protocols
enter into force. If there are no delays, the process is expected to
be completed before the end of this year or early 2010.
However, Turkey continues to hinge the normalization of its relations
on Armenia to what it calls improvements on the Nagorno-Karabakh
track. Ankara earlier assured Azerbaijan that it would not open the
border with Armenia unless the Karabakh Armenian territories liberated
from Azeri rule during the conflict are not returned to Baku’s control.
Turkey has already launched a new diplomatic initiative for mobilizing
international actors in this regard, according to sources. Davutoglu
held a long phone conversation with the foreign minister of France and
the US Secretary of State, and the two French and US members of the
Minsk Group, tasked with settling the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict. The
issue was already largely discussed with Russia, the third member of
the Minsk Group.
Davutoglu will continue to discuss the issue with his counterparts
on every occasion, Hurriyet said, citing unnamed sources.
The issue will also be on the agenda of Prime Minister Recep Tayyip
Erdogan’s visit to the UN General Assembly late September. The Foreign
Ministry is also trying to arrange bilateral meetings with the United
States, France and Russia with Erdogan, who also hopes to take the
issue to the G-8 meeting in Pittsburgh at the end of this month.
One of Ankara’s short-term expectations is to let Armenia and
Azerbaijan agree on an interim agreement for the Nagorno-Karabakh
conflict. A meeting between the leaders of the two countries
is scheduled for November 8 in Moldova during the summit of the
Commonwealth of the Independent States.
Accompanied with this deal, Ankara is stating that the reconciliation
process between the three countries will require Armenia to accept
an agree to the return of the liberated territories to Azeri rule.
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress
