AFTER GUL MEETING, SARKISIAN CLAIMS PRECONDITIONS ‘OUT OF THE QUESTION’
Asbarez
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May 8th, 2009
PRAGUE (Combined Sources)-Armenian President Serzh Sarkisian late on
Thursday insisted that preconditions in negotiations between Armenia
and Turkey are "simply out of the question" after what he called
"useful" talks with his Turkish counterpart President Abdullah Gul
in Prague.
The two leaders met on the fringes of a European Union summit in the
Czech capital for a third time in eight months. The meeting came two
weeks after Ankara and Yerevan announced that they have "identified
a roadmap" for establishing diplomatic relations and reopening the
Turkish-Armenian border.
Sarkisian told journalists after the talks that Armenia and Turkey
remain committed to normalizing bilateral relations soon. "We agreed to
honor our agreements," he said, adding that the two sides will "move
towards normalizing Turkish-Armenian relations without preconditions
and within reasonable time frames."
But Sarkisian has already accepted at least some of the Turkish
preconditions by discussing the Karabakh conflict with the Turks
and agreeing to the creation of a Turkish-Armenian commission of
historians. The commission would reportedly focus on the Armenian
Genocide-a Turkish ploy designed to keep more countries of the world,
notably the United States, from officially recognizing the crime
against humanity.
Sarkisian’s conciliatory policy toward Turkey has been met with harsh
criticism by Armenians-both in the Diaspora and Armenia-weary of the
political and economic consequences that may follow if relations are
normalized based on Turkey’s demands on Armenia.
The Armenian Revolutionary Federation strongly condemned the April
22 roadmap agreement and left the governing coalition, citing
"insurmountable, fundamental disagreements" over the government’s
approach toward normalizing relations with Turkey.
The negotiations process has seen Yerevan make major concessions to
Ankara, according to the ARF, which has repeatedly warned that Turkey
is exploiting the process to become an actor in the Nagorno-Karabakh
peace talks and to deter the United States from officially recognizing
the Armenian Genocide.
It, however, still remains unclear when the Armenian and Turkish
governments plan to establish diplomatic relations and reopen the
border. Neither government has officially disclosed the framework yet,
keeping the lid tight on the entire negotiation process.
What is clear, according to the former foreign minister of Armenia,
Vartan Oskanian, is that "both the issue of the joint commission and
diplomatic relations are on the Turkish-Armenian negotiation agenda,
and agreement in principle has been reached on these issues."
"Today, Turkish diplomacy has succeeded in formulating its blunt
preconditions in such a way as to make them palatable to the
international community. The precondition of abandoning genocide
recognition has assumed the form of an offer to set up a joint
commission of historians. The territorial issues have taken the
form of reciprocal recognition of borders through establishment of
diplomatic relations," Armenia’s longtime chief diplomat said in an
op-ed, titled "Time to Take Stock," published earlier this week in
the Armenian media.
Gul, not surprisingly, seemed satisfied with his discussions with
Sarkisian obut did not comment on possible dates for border opening.
He said the two leaders also discussed regional security issues,
stressing the importance of both the Turkish-Armenian dialogue and
the Nagorno-Karabakh peace process. "I think that improved relations
in the Caucasus will stem from everyone’s interests," the Turkish
president told reporters.
Gul cited in that regard Sarkisian’s meeting earlier in the day with
Azerbaijan’s President Ilham Aliyev which international mediators
said marked further progress towards a Karabakh settlement. He did
not specify whether such a settlement is a necessary condition for
the normalization of Turkish-Armenian ties.
But Turkey’s Prime Minister, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, as well as Turkey’s
powerful military and National Security Council have all repeatedly
and forcefully stated in recent weeks that Ankara will not reopen
the Armenian border as long as the Karabakh dispute remains unresolved.
"Today, it is obvious that Armenia has been involved in a process that
it no longer controls and on which it has no leverage," Oskanian said,
echoing longtime concerns put forth by the ARF. "By publicly announcing
the existence of the Roadmap without any indication about its content,
Armenia has ended its role in the negotiations, and left the process,
its interpretation, and its future evolution to the Turks."