ANKARA: Signal for Face-to Face Meeting

Zaman, Turkey
May 1 2005

Signal for Face-to Face Meeting
By Erdal Sen
Published: Sunday 01, 2005
zaman.com

The Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan who took the first
step about the genocide claims by writing a letter to Kocharyan is
getting ready for his second initiative. Diplomatic sources expect a
face-to-face meeting in up coming international meetings, in which
the two leaders will participate in May.

Drawing the attention of the international community with his
proposal to handle the historical claims in a joint commission,
Erdogan is expected to make his second initiative by meeting with
Armenian President Robert Kocharyan. Both Erdogan and Kocharyan will
participate in the ceremonies in Moscow to be held on May 9 and also
in the Summit of the Council of Europe in Warsaw on May 15-16. It is
reported that the two leaders might meet in either of these two
activities.

According to reports from the prime ministry, it is planned that
Erdogan and Kocharyan will meet in Warsaw, the capital of Poland,
where the Summit of the Council of Europe will be held. It is
indicated that no time and place were set for the meeting, instead an
opportunity will be created for the meeting during the summit;
however, if no opportunity is found, the possibility of not having a
meeting is not ignored. If a meeting takes place between Erdogan and
Kocharyan, the high-ranking officials of the two countries will for
the first time discuss the genocide claims face to face. The
diplomatic initiative that Turkey recently began on the issue, began
with the exchange of letters between the two leaders.