Hilda Tchoboian And Peter Semneby Discuss EU’s Caucasus Policy

HILDA TCHOBOIAN AND PETER SEMNEBY DISCUSS EU’S CAUCASUS POLICY

Noyan Tapan

Oc t 9, 2008

BRUSSELS, OCTOBER 9, ARMENIANS TODAY – NOYAN TAPAN. Peter Semneby,
the EU special envoy to the South Caucasus, and Hilda Tchoboian,
the Chairperson of the European Armenian Federation, held a meeting
on 24 September in the framework of the regular consultations that
take place between the Euro-Armenian NGO and EU institutions.

The main focus of their talks was the recent geopolitical unrest in the
South Caucasus, the renewed interest in improvement of Turkey-Armenia
relations, and the challenges faced by Georgia’s ethnic Armenian
population.

The interlocutors reiterated their common interest in eventually
seeing the normalization of regional cooperation in South Caucasus,
particularly in the wake of the Georgian crisis. The President of
the European Armenian Federation, however, informed Mr. Semneby of
her organization’s scepticism about Turkey’s proposed "Caucasian
Platform for Stability and Cooperation," noting that, until now,
Turkey has primarily been a destabilizing factor in the region, as
evidenced by its blockade of Armenia and its pro-Azerbaijani bias in
the Karabagh conflict.