TBILISI: European Parliament Issues Resolution On South Caucasus

EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT ISSUES RESOLUTION ON SOUTH CAUCASUS
By M. Alkhazashvili

The Messenger
Jan 24 2008
Georgia

A new resolution recently adopted by the European Parliament calls on
South Caucasian countries and Turkey not to engage in short-sighted or
politically motivated regional projects, according to the Azerbaijani
news agency APA.

Last year the presidents of Georgia, Azerbaijan and Turkey gathered
near Tbilisi to inaugurate the construction of the Baku-Tbilisi-Kars
railway, a regional project which has come under fire from abroad
for excluding Armenia.

The resolution says that the Baku-Tbilisi-Akhalkalaki-Kars project
avoids the already existing Armenia-Turkey rail link, which does
not operate as the border is closed between the two countries. The
resolution calls on Turkey to engage in talks to resolve disputes with
its neighbors and emphasizes the importance of reopening the border.