IMPROVEMENT IN ARMENIAN-TURKISH TIES POSSIBLE THROUGH RESOLVING NAGORNO-KARABAKH CONFLICT
Trend News Agency
Feb 20 2009
Azerbaijan
Azerbaijan, Baku, Feb. 19 Trend News E.Tariverdiyeva/ The improvement
in the Armenian-Turkish relations is possible only through the
Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, taking into consideration territorial
integrity of Azerbaijan, experts considers.
"Turkish officials have underscored the seriousness of the process
of normalization of relations with Armenia, but Turkey has also been
careful to keep Azerbaijani officials informed of its priorities as
well as to sustain efforts aimed at solving the Karabakh conflict,"
Licinia Simao, expert on South Caucasus, said.
The position of Turkey and Azerbaijan on the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict
remains unchanged, the Ihlas news agency quoted Turkish Prime Minister
Recep Tayyip Erdogan as saying at a press conference on Feb. 18.
"We are continuing the process with Azerbaijan in the same direction,"
Erdogan said.
The former Soviet republics of Armenia and Azerbaijan are officially
in the situation of war because of the Nagorno-Karabakh region,
populated by Armenians. Self-proclaimed republic is considered by
the world community as part of Azerbaijan. Since the beginning of
the Armenian- Azerbaijani conflict in 1988, nearly 35,000 people have
been killed, 20 percent of the territory of Azerbaijan, in particular
Nagorno-Karabakh and seven surrounding regions, are still under the
occupation of the armed forces of Armenia.
A ceasefire agreement was reached in 1994. Still Baku and Yerevan hold
negotiations through international mediators, which have yielded no
results. The ceasefire agreement is periodically broke on the line
of contact of the armed forces of sides.
Turkey and Armenia attempt to normalize the relations, which were
broken off already in 1993 due to Armenia’s "genocide" campaign and
forceful occupation of 20 percent of Azerbaijani territory.
Turkish President Abdullah Gul visited Yerevan on Sept. 6, 2008
after being invited by Armenian counterpart Serzh Sargsyan to watch
a football match between the two countries. Efforts have been made
to normalize ties ever since.
The observers consider that the improvement in the Armenian-Turkish
relations is possible only through the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict,
taking into consideration territorial integrity of Azerbaijan.
Turkey has demands without which it is impossible to establish
relations with Armenia and settlement of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict
basing on Azerbaijan’s territorial integrity is one them, Turkish
Expert to Caucasus Kamer Kasim said.
"If the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict is not settled in line with
Azerbaijan’s territorial integrity, Ankara will not establish relations
with Armenia, because borders were closed due to Armenia’s occupying
the Azerbaijani territories," Usak International Strategic Research
Centre Expert Kasim told Trend News in a telephone conversation
from Ankara.
Baku and Ankara have a clear agreement on the Nagorno-Karabakh problem
and Turkey will never establish relations with Armenia unilaterally if
Yerevan does not follow the agreement. "Turkey will never establish
relations with Armenia in prejudice of Azerbaijan, as Azerbaijan is
a key figure to settle the conflict," Kasim said.
"The Turkish government stated that Turkey will not establish
relations with Armenia without the Armenian troop’s withdrawal from
the Azerbaijani occupied lands," Azerbaijani Parliamentary Member
Asim Mollazade told Trend News.
"I have recently been in Ankara where officials of the Turkish
governing party stated at the highest level that Turkey supports
Azerbaijan as usual," Azerbaijan Democratic Reforms Party Chairman
Mollazade said.
Baku should rely on the Turkish government’s promise that Ankara is
seeking to assist in settling the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict as usual,
he said. "Serious breakthrough in the conflict settlement will not
occur without the Armenian troop’s withdrawal from the occupied
territories," Mollazade said.
For Armenia the ongoing conflict with Azerbaijan carries a great deal
of hardships and Yerevan would be happy to resolve the situation,
Simao said.
"This is more so, as the current status quo in Karabakh is seen
in Yerevan as equivalent to a de facto autonomy from Azerbaijan,"
University of Coimbra Fellow Simao wrote to Trend News in an email.
The international community should take this context into account and
make all efforts and preparations to assist in the implementation of
a settlement agreement, Simao said.
Most of experts think if Turkey establishes diplomatic relations
with Armenia, this will improve a situation with settlement of the
Nagorno-Karabakh conflict while basing on Azerbaijan’s territorial
integrity.
Russian political scientist Kirill Tanaev said the improvement of the
Armenia-Turkey ties might have an influence on the resolving of the
Nagorno-Karabakh conflict positively, since expansion of confidence
measures in the Caucasus region has an objective contribution to the
resolution of the conflict.
"Turkey seeks to play a more active role, and this means that it would
like to speak unless the arbitrator, then one of the mediators between
Armenia and Azerbaijan," Rational Policy Fund director general Tanaev
said to Trend News.
If turkey has diplomatic relations with Armenia it can only improve
the resolution of the conflict in Nagorno- Karabakh, Director of
Inside Europe, an Armenian think-tank in Brussels Nicolas Tavitian said
"Right now Turkey has no means to help in resolution of this conflict,
but if it talks to Armenia it will have means of persuading Armenia,"
Tavitian said.
Now Turkey has established actual relations with Armenia and has
more abilities to influence the country. Once diplomatic relations
are established and economic relations are established then Armenia
will have interest in Turkey. You look to your partner- you listen
to the people who listen to you.
Azerbaijani political scientist does not agree with this statement.
"Armenia’s position is not based on its relations with the countries,
as many are interested in solving this conflict, and while they have
good relations with Armenia," Molladze said.
R. Agayev (Moscow), R.Hafizoglu and D.Ibrahimova constributed in
the article.