Armenian FM Gives Interview To Russian "kommersant"

ARMENIAN FM GIVES INTERVIEW TO RUSSIAN "KOMMERSANT"

Panorama.am
12:05 12/10/2009

Armenian Foreign Minister Edward Nalbandyan expressed Armenia’s
disposition over the signing of the Armenian-Turkish protocols and
the ongoing processes of Karabakh conflict resolution in his interview
to Russian "Kommersant".

"I can not exclude anything. It depends on how much the sides will
feel respect towards the agreements and will advance. Armenia respects
the agreements which have been made in the aftermath of mediation
of foreign states," Armenian FM answered to the request if the
Armenian-Turkish border will be opened till the end of the year.

"The process of normalizing ties with Turkey is Armenia’s President’s
initiative, when he invited Turkey’s President to Armenia to watch
football match. Since then the negotiations started and the Foreign
Ministers of both states have had tens of meetings. In February the
negotiations over the agreements ended and protocols were pre-signed
on 2 April. On 31 August Armenia and Turkey declared that internal
consultations should be launched to discuss the protocols, to sign
them and ratify afterwards," Minister Nalbandyan said.

When exactly the protocols will be signed, Mr. Nalbandyan said,
it depends on the parliaments.

"We hope it will happen within reasonable timeframes," he said.

Regarding the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict resolution and the processes
over it and Kishinev negotiations between the Presidents, Minister
said"

"If we take into consideration that it has been the seventh meeting
of the Presidents, then some advancement exists. That dynamics is
positive. Currently the Presidents discuss Madrid documents. To be
more precise they discuss two basic principles. By the initiative of
the Minsk Group they try to make their dispositions closer."

According to the Minister the sides discuss the status of
Nagorno-Karabakh.

It has been stated that D. Medvedev’s role is great, who has had
several meetings with the Presidents of Armenia and Azerbaijan. All
those meetings were success.