‘TURKEY’S FOREIGN MINISTRY HAS MADE A MISTAKE’
Aysor
25.01.2010, 14:18
Turkey’s Foreign Ministry has issued a statement [on Armenian
Constitutional Court’s decision on Armenia-Turkey protocols] without
any detailed pointing out of the controversial issues, said analyst
at the St. Petersburg Center for the Modern Middle East Studies
Alexander Sotnichenko.
He said the short statement shows that Turkey’s officials are
displeased with some new preconditions limiting the signed in Zurich
documents. Meanwhile, they do not point out any of those ‘controversial
preconditions’, according to analyst. It looks like Turkey’s Foreign
Ministry is displeased with Court’s decision on primacy of two points
— ‘the establishment of the diplomatic relations and ‘the opening
of the common border’. This in some ways means that Armenia doesn’t
wish for recognition of Turkey’s territorial integrity.
"In my opinion, Turkey’s Foreign Minister has made a mistake when
it issued a short negative statement instead of a detailed report on
Armenian Constitutional Court’s decision. This will lead to statements
by anti-Turkish forces that Turkey is fastening down the process of
ratification for protocols. But, on the other hand, we still don’t
know what the text was used by Turkey’s Foreign Ministry as the
non-official translation into English of the Court’s decision had
been still published. This lets Armenian side change its base."
Meanwhile, the U.S. State Department has welcomed Armenian
Constitutional Court’s decision on Armenia-Turkey protocols. It’s a
positive step forward in the ratification process of the protocols,
said U.S. Assistant Secretary of State Philip Gordon.
"The court decision permits the protocols, as they were negotiated
and signed, to move towards parliamentary ratification. Court’s
decision does not appear to limit or qualify protocols in any way,"
Philip Gordon stressed.