TURKISH DIPLOMAT SAYS ISRAELI MINISTER “SABOTAGED” FLOTILLA INCIDENT ACCORD
Anadolu Agency, Turkey
March 10 2013
Turkish Ambassador in Ottawa gives lecture at University of Toronto
– Turkish Ambassador to Ottawa, Tuncay Babali: ‘Lieberman sabotaged
the agreement with Israel’
ANKARA (AA) -March 10, 2013 -Turkish Ambassador in Ottawa, Tuncay
Babali said that Israeli Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman has
sabotaged the overcoming of the crisis over ‘Mavi Marmara’.
Turkish and Israeli relations, which were hurt after ‘Mavi Marmara’
incident, could get better, stated Babali, Turkish Ambassador
in Ottawa, in a lecture on ‘Relations of Turkey and Canada in the
opposite of new opportunities and hardships’ at Munk School on Sunday.
He said that countries like Canada tried to arbitrate between Turkey
and Israel, by stating, “We don’t side with second track diplomacy.
Our preference is direct negotiation. This canal is also open and is
done when needed.”
Babali stated that he hopes to get closer to an overcoming of the
crisis, by saying, “There were moments in the past, where we were
close to a solution. However, Lieberman sabotaged the process. He
was never ready for an agreement. It’s not a secret.”
Babali reminded that Turkey always had protected and helped the Jews
in history and said that the Jews in Turkey live in peace and security.
The Armenian Supreme Court has found the protocol as impolitic,
which was signed in 2009 after long negotiations between Turkey and
Armenia, Babali told upon a question on when Turkish-Armenian border
would be opened. Saying that the conditions are definite between two
countries, he said, “We never rejected that Armenians suffered in
1915, but we also had suffered. Only Armenians can enter the Dashnak
archives in Boston. We want all of the Ottoman, Armenian and every
related archives to be analysed by historians. While Turkey lost 250
thousand trained citizens as martyrs in the Dardanelles, there were
three Armenian origin ministers in the Ottoman rule.”
After the conference, Babali on behalf of Turkey and Rector Meric
Gertler on behalf of University of Toronto have signed an agreement
on cooperation, which would allow an exchange of researchers, common
conferences, seminars and organizations on material, press and the
exchange of information between two countries.
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress
Disclaimer: This article was contributed and translated into English by Emil Lazarian. While we strive for quality, the views and accuracy of the content remain the responsibility of the contributor. Please verify all facts independently before reposting or citing.
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