Author: Kajoyan Gevork

Erdogan warns Sarkozy against passage of genocide bill

Tert.am
16.12.11

Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan has sent a letter to French
President Nicolas Sarkozy, warning him against the what he called
the grave consequences of the Armenian Genocide penalization bill.

Citing Turkey’s state-run Anatolia news agency, Today’s Zaman
reported that Erdogan had called on Sarkozy to prevent the passage
of the bill in question. He said the approval of the bill in the
French parliament would result in grave consequences with regards to
Turkey’s multifaceted relations with France in the fields of politics,
economy and culture, adding that France would be responsible for
these consequences if the bill is approved.

Noting that the approval of the bill would seriously restrict freedom
of expression of those who approach the Armenian issue from a different
perspective, Erdogan said such moves would not contribute to efforts
to settle the conflict between Turkey and Armenia on the issue through
dialogue. “On the contrary, they [such moves] pose as an obstacle
before the emergence of the truth,” Erdogan said.

The French parliament was earlier reported to have scheduled a vote
on the pieces of legislation on December 22.

If approved, the bill proposed by Valeri Boyer will make the denial of
the Armenian genocide denial punishable for up to one year in prison,
imposing a fine of â~B¬45,000 on anyone who refuses to acknowledge
the historical fact.

The French National Assembly had passed similar bill in October 2006.

But it needed the Senate’s approval to be enacted. In May 2011,
the Senate voted down the proposal with a vote of 74 in favor and
196 against.

ARMENIAN MP HOPES FOR FRENCH PARLIAMENT TO ADOPT GENOCIDE BILL

PanARMENIAN.Net
December 16, 2011 – 14:23 AMT

PanARMENIAN.Net – Armenian MP Gagik Minasyan commented on
Armenian-Turkish normalization process as well as the bill
criminalizing the Armenian Genocide denial introduced recently to
the French parliament.

“Hopefully, French President Nicolas Sarkozy’s words regarding the
Armenian Genocide recognition will encourage the French parliament
to adopt the bill penalizing the Armenian Genocide denial regardless
of Turkey’s threats,” Minasyan said

He noted discussion of the Armenian issue by Turkish public among
the positive results the reconciliation process yielded.

Armenian MP further hailed adoption of H.Res.306 by U.S. House of
Representatives calling upon Turkey to return the Christian church
properties it stole through genocide.

The French National Assembly is set to vote on the bill criminalizing
the Armenian Genocide denial on December 22.

On December 7, the Judiciary Committee of the National Assembly has
passed the bill introduced by MP Valerie Boyer (UMP). The measure
envisages a 45,000 euro fine and a one-year imprisonment for the denial
of the Armenian Genocide, which was recognized by France back in 2001.

In the framework of his visit to Armenia, French President Nicolas
Sarkozy called for Turkish recognition of the Armenian Genocide and
resumption of Armenian-Turkish normalization process.

On December 7, the Judiciary Committee of the French National Assembly
has passed the bill on criminalization of the Armenian Genocide denial
introduced by MP Valerie Boyer (UMP).

On December 14, the U.S. House of Representatives adopted a landmark
religious freedom measure, H.Res.306, calling upon Turkey to return
the Christian church properties it stole through genocide, and to
end its repression of the surviving members of the vast Christian
civilizations that once represented a majority in the territory of
the present-day Republic of Turkey.

On August 28, Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan signed a decree
on the return of Christian and Jewish religious property confiscated
after the 1930s. The properties involved include hospitals, orphanage
and school buildings, burial grounds.

The Turkish government also intends to pay compensation for the
property sold away. The property subject to return includes the former
hospital, orphanage, school buildings, cemeteries, shops, ground area,
as well as all assets of the Fund “Surb Harutiun” (Holly Resurrection).

MINISTER TERZI MEETS WITH FOREIGN MINISTER OF ARMENIA EDWARD NALBANDIAN

Rome 13 December 2011

Minister for Foreign Affairs Giulio Terzi held a long and amiable
meeting with Armenian Foreign Minister Edward Nalbandian during which
they confirmed their mutual support the strengthening of bilateral
political and economic relations, not least in light of the increased
trade recorded over the past year. Minister Terzi underscored that
Italy placed political dialogue with Jerevan within the context
of Armenia’s gradual European Union integration and, to that end,
assured Italy’s support for an Association Agreement.

The two ministers also addressed the main regional issues concerning
the Caucasus and relations with Iran. Regarding the former, Minister
Terzi expressed Italy’s support for the Minsk Group’s efforts in OSCE
negotiations with Azerbaijan.

Finally, Terzi and Nalbandian underscored the importance of cultural
relations between Rome and Jerevan, which are especially intense during
the present period. Tomorrow Armenian President Sargsyan will open the
exhibition “Impressioni d’Armenia” in Venice, in celebration 500th
anniversary of the first book printed in Armenian 500 in that city,
while 2012 has been declared the Year of the Armenian Book in Italy.

ARMENIAN MASS GRAVE SITES MAY BECOME VICTIM OF CURRENT SYRIAN UNREST
by Alexandra Avakian

Ararat Magazine of AGBU

Dec 16 2011

With a popular revolution raging and protesters facing extreme violence
in Syria now, coupled with the beginning of civil war between Syria
and the Free Syrian Army, I have deep concern for all Syrians subjected
to brutality.

As an American-Armenian I also find myself thinking about the future
of Syrian-Armenians – mostly descendents of the victims and survivors
of the Armenian Genocide – if the regime of Bashar al-Assad falls and
a new government comes to power. I’ve heard Armenians are staying
on the sidelines and out of the fighting. No doubt they fear an
unknown future.

I also think about the loss of Armenian and Syrian history as the
physical evidence of the Armenian Genocide vanishes now and in
the future.

Syria has a proud record of having helped the Armenian refugees
during and after the Genocide. Syrian-Armenians have thrived and their
culture has been embraced in Syria. Syrians know well what happened
to the Armenians in 1915, on their land, a part of the Ottoman Empire
back then.

I hope that Syria will continue to protect its Armenian population,
regardless of the outcome of the current revolution, and will take
steps to protect Armenian and Syrian history. Recently I learned of
an unconfirmed report that Syria gave its original contemporaneous
official documents on the Genocide to Turkey. If true, this is most
unfortunate.

I’ve been to Syria many times, and on one of those trips, in 2005,
I photographed some of the mass gravesites of the Armenian Genocide
along Route 7, mostly along the old bed of the river Khabur, a
tributary of the Euphrates, and a favorite massacre site of the
Ottoman Turks. The graves hold the bones of women and children,
as they were marched without their men – already massacred – from
Turkey into the Syrian Desert.

Armenians outside Syria often forget that these mass graves still
exist.

Under the current regime of President Bashar al-Assad at the time of
my visit, the sites were being compromised:

Margada had a waterworks project complete with bulldozers atop it.

Shadadeh is closed because it’s an oil field.

The Ras ul Ain site on the Turkish border is occupied by farmers who
crush skulls and toss bones aside every time they work the land. That
land is owned by the Syrian Wakf (Islamic Trust) and is adjacent to
a Muslim graveyard. Part of the site was under construction when I
was there.

Another mass grave site is long thought to be under Hafez al-Assad
Reservoir.

And what of the mass graves now? Is the situation the same or worse
during the turmoil of this revolution?

What will become of the gravesites in the future? If Turkey makes
good on a threat to create a buffer zone between Syria and Turkey,
will the Ras ul Ain mass grave be under Turkish control? What then
of the future of that mass grave?

Ideally the mass grave sites should be under the protection of the
Armenian Church, with chapels nearby, just as the Bosnians have
Potocari-Srebrenica Memorial Museum and Cemetery, even as more mass
graves are discovered, and as the Jews have at Auschwitz.

Something Armenian diplomats and the Church must pursue, whoever wins
the current struggle for Syria.

Here are some of the photos I took on that short journey on the
occasion of the 90th anniversary of the Armenian Genocide.

‘INTERCOMMUNITY DIALOGUE WILL GIVE IMPETUS TO REGULATE KARABAKH CONFLICT’

news.az
Dec 16 2011
Azerbaijan

News.Az interviews Eldar Ibrahimov, member of Azerbaijani delegation
to OSCE PA.

Baku and Yerevan have both supporters and opponents of dialogue between
Azerbaijani and Armenian communities of Karabakh. Proponents of what
position do you think are right in their assessments regarding the
importance of intercommunity dialogue?

As you know, the arrangement of meetings between the Azerbaijani and
Armenian communities continues to be troublesome. The reason for
this is that the Armenian side avoids such meetings by boycotting
the whole peace process on the settlement of Karabakh conflict.

I am sure, however, that the meeting of Azerbaijani and Armenian
communities of Karabakh can serve progress in the settlement
of the Karabakh conflict. I also think that the establishment
of intercommunity dialogue can facilitate decision-making at the
political level between Azerbaijan and Armenia.

As you know, Azerbaijani and Armenian sides have been meeting at
the presidential, parliamentary and foreign ministry level. However,
direct meetings between the Armenian and Azerbaijani communities of
Karabakh, as I said, can give a positive impetus to the negotiation
process. In general, I believe that such meetings can be useful for
the settlement of the conflict.

Is there any probability that the Azerbaijani and Armenian communities
of Karabakh itself, without the political leadership of Azerbaijan
and Armenia will be able to come to some agreement on the settlement
of the conflict?

Such task is a difficult one to achieve. Since the communities are not
able to replace the presidents of Azerbaijan and Armenia and sign any
documents and make decisions. They are supposed to be able to reach
an agreement on peaceful coexistence in Nagorno-Karabakh. After that,
they can raise this issue with the heads of Azerbaijan and Armenia,
which are authorized to accept and sign the relevant treaty of peace.

President of OSCE Parliamentary Assembly Goran Lennmarker has also
recently voiced a need dialogue between the communities of Karabakh.

Can we consider his call as a forming position of European political
circles to this problem?

Lennmarker headed the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly, and besides, he was
a reporter of the Assembly on the Karabakh conflict. In this regard,
he was better aware than anyone else of the ongoing situation around
Nagorno-Karabakh settlement. Of course, taking these positions,
Lennmarker could himself take the initiative for meetings between
Armenian and Azerbaijani communities of Karabakh. But, unfortunately,
he did not take at its disposal the power and capabilities. The
Azerbaijani side is ready to participate in the intercommunity
dialogue. Since we understand that the direct meeting and dialogue
can bring positive elements in the settlement of the conflict.

Lennmarker also believes that the Karabakh settlement process may
contribute to the integration of Azerbaijan and Armenia in the European
Union. In what extent can this perspective be attractive for official
Baku and Yerevan to make compromise in resolving the Karabakh conflict?

In this case, much will depend on the level of involvement of
Armenia and Azerbaijan in the integration process. In addition,
Lennmarker wants the integration of the two South Caucasus countries
in the European Union so that Azerbaijan would provide assistance to
Armenia in connection with the difficult socio-economic situation in
this country. However, none of the Azerbaijani citizens would agree
to help the Armenian side before the liberation of the lands. In
addition, I believe that the Azerbaijani leadership also does not
agree to provide such assistance before the withdrawal of Armenian
occupying forces from Azerbaijani lands.

HULUSI KILIC: TURKEY WILL NOT ACCEPT THE PEACE FORMULA IN THE RESOLUTION OF NAGORNO KARABAKH CONFLICT, WHICH AZERBAIJAN WILL NOT AGREE TO

MilAz.info
Dec 16 2011
Azerbaijan

“Azerbaijan-Turkey relations are particular,” Turkish ambassador to
Azerbaijan Hulusi Kilic said at the press conference on the outcomes
of 2011, APA reports.

Turkish ambassador said the relations between the two countries are
developing rapidly.

Speaking about the recent earthquake in Turkey Hulusi Kilic expressed
his gratitude to Azerbaijani leadership, especially Minister of
Emergency Situations Kemaleddin Heydarov.

“During the earthquake it was proved once more that we are two nations,
one state. Minister Kemaleddin Heydarov and his team fulfilled their
mission perfectly. We are grateful to them,” he said.

Touching on Karabakh conflict Hulusi Kilic said Turkey will not accept
the peace formula in the resolution of Nagorno Karabakh conflict,
which Azerbaijan will not agree to.

“Our main stipulation is the release of Karabakh. After that we can
open the borders with Armenia,” he said.

The ambassador said the election of Azerbaijan as the non-permanent
member of the UN Security Council was a great achievement and
indication of the world’s confidence in Azerbaijan.

The Strategic Cooperation Council’s meeting held in Izmir this year
was an important event in the context of Azerbaijan-Turkey relations
in 2011. Touching upon the economic relations, Hulusi Kilic welcomed
the Azerbaijani investment in Turkey. He said so far Azerbaijan has
invested $10 billion in Turkish economy, including the energy sector.

Multiple mutual visits took place this year, the ambassador reminded.

He said the inter-state relations were developing in all spheres.

Trade turnover increased to $3 billion this year.

“Every day 6 Baku-Istanbul-Baku flights were carried out. This is an
indication of our close relations”.

The ambassador said next meeting of the Strategic Cooperation Council
would be held in Baku in 2012. “This is very important meeting.

Further Baku-Tbilisi-Kars railway is expected to be opened. We are
also looking forward for the new development in the energy field”.

TURKEY WARNS FRANCE AGAINST ‘GRAVE CONSEQUENCES’ OF PASSING GENOCIDE BILL

Today’s Zaman
Dec 16 2011
Turkey

Turkey has warned France against significant damage of political
and economic ties if French lawmakers pass a controversial measure
criminalizing the denial of Armenian claims that their ancestors were
subject to genocide in Anatolia during the World War I.

Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoðan has sent a letter to French
President Nicolas Sarkozy, warning him against the “grave consequences”
of the possible passage of the bill, while Foreign Minister Ahmet
Davutoðlu has told French businessmen who invest in Turkey that
such a move by French Parliament would also be detrimental to their
business interests.

The French parliament is set to vote next week on a piece of
legislation that could make denying the 1915 events that took place
in Turkey as genocide punishable by up to one year in prison and
a fine of 45,000 euros. The Turkish reaction escalated over the
week from mild suggestion to the French to reconsider the voting,
to outright warnings that France will be facing severe consequences,
including the withdrawal of the Turkish ambassador from Paris, as
the day of the voting, Monday the Dec. 19, approached.

Prevent the passage of the bill in question, was Erdoðan’s message
to the French president in the letter. He said the approval of the
bill in the French parliament would result in grave consequences
with regards to Turkey’s multifaceted relations with France in the
fields of politics, economy and culture, adding that France would be
responsible for these consequences if the bill is approved.

Erdoðan recalled that the French National Assembly adopted a bill in
2006, proposing that anyone who denied the “Armenian genocide” would be
punished, but the bill was dropped the same year before coming to the
senate. Stating that France’s new move had surprised Turkey, Erdoðan
said Turkey is closely following these the recent efforts to pass the
bill. “This bill directly targets the state of the Turkish Republic,
the Turkish nation and the Turkish community in France and is seen
as hostile. … Bills on [genocide] denial that are periodically put
in front of us and hurt our bilateral relations each time, not only
violate freedom of expression but also contradict principles France
defends,” he said.

Noting that the approval of the bill would seriously restrict the
freedom of expression of those who approach the Armenian issue from a
different perspective, Erdoðan said such moves would not contribute
to efforts to settle the conflict between Turkey and Armenia on the
issue through dialogue. “On the contrary, they [such moves] pose as
an obstacle before the emergence of the truth,” Erdoðan said.

Erdoðan’s letter follows remarks by a Turkish diplomat who said on
Thursday that Turkey would withdraw its ambassador in Paris if the
French parliament passes the bill.

Turkish Ambassador Tahsin Burcuoðlu will be recalled to Ankara for
consultations for an indefinite period of time, Engin Solakoðlu,
undersecretary of the Turkish Embassy in Paris, told the Anatolia
news agency. “Passing the measure will lead to irreparable damage of
Turkish-French ties,” Solakoðlu also said.

Warning to French CEOs In addition to diplomatic relations, France’s
business ties with Turkey are also at stake. At a meeting with CEOs
of French companies that have investments in Turkey, Foreign Minister
Davutoðlu made it clear that economic ties will be harmed as much as
the political relations.

Davutoðlu invited the CEOs to the meeting, which took place on Thursday
at the Turkish Foreign Ministry, telling them ramifications of the
passage of the measure will not be confined to political ties.

“Should the bill pass, it will not be only our political ties,
but also economic relation to suffer from it,” Davutoðlu warned the
company executives. Paralleling the damage in Turkish-French relations,
French investors will also be adversely affected, he said.

Whether company executives would act on the warning they received from
him and take initiatives to influence their government is up to them,
Davutoðlu added.

One of Turkey’s influential business clubs, the Turkish Industrialists
and Businessmen’s Association (TUSÝAD), has also criticized the French
move to penalize deniers of the alleged genocide, saying the bill
limits freedom of thought and research. “TUSÝAD believes parliament
cannot assume the power of the judiciary, that it cannot write history
and that politicians cannot act as judges,” TUSÝAD Chairwoman Umit
Boyner told Anatolia.

“We would like to convey our concerns regarding this bill, which
we believe runs counter to European values, to French politicians
through French business groups,” she added.

Turkish officials and business people also express worry over the
possibility of being arrested during their visits to France in case
they express their belief that the Armenian deaths did not result
from genocide. At an EU meeting at the Polish Embassy in Ankara,
Davutoðlu voiced these concerns, asking if France would arrest him
if he claimed that genocide did not happen. “It is a mentality from a
very dark age,” Davutoðlu said in Parliament on Wednesday to highlight
that the bill was in contradiction with modern European values.

Armenian groups say up to 1.5 million Armenians were killed during
World War I in a systematic genocide campaign perpetrated by the
Ottoman Empire. Turkey categorically rejects the charges, saying the
death toll is inflated and that Turks were also killed as Armenians
revolted against the Ottoman Empire in collaboration with Russian
forces for an independent state in eastern Anatolia.

Ankara believes the new French drive to placate the Armenian lobby
in France by passing the controversial bill is closely linked with
the upcoming presidential elections.

During his meeting with French CEOs, Davutoðlu stressed that the voting
was designed with concerns regarding domestic politics, referring
to the upcoming elections in France, as he expressed belief that
Sarkozy was behind the revival of the bill, which was dropped once
before when it came to the French Senate.

The French president was a known opponent of the genocide denial bill
but Ankara believes the elections drastically changed his attitude to
gain favor with the strong Armenian vote in his country. His Socialist
Part rival Francois Hollande is also in favor of passing the bill.

ARMENIAN RAMKAVAR LIBERAL PARTY AND ARMENAKAN-RAK CALL TO STOP PRESSURE ON SYRIA

news.am
Dec 16 2011
Armenia

YEREVAN. – Armenian Ramkavar Liberal Party (ARLP), headed by Edward
Antinyan and Armenakan-RAK party, headed by Hakob Avetikian, express
their concern on the situation in Syria.

“Syria is a friend to Armenia. It hosted many Armenians escaped from
the [1915] Genocide. Armenian people have always been thankful to
the state.

Currently when an important state in the Arab world is subjected to
foreign and domestic pressures and local Armenians’ fate is in danger,
the whole Armenians are concerned.

ARLP and Armenakan-RAK parties are making a joint statement on this
decisive moment and call to stop foreign pressure on Syria. It will
enable the state and the authorities to solve domestic issues through
peaceful negotiations,” the joint statement reads.

EDITORIAL: PASTOR YOUSEF: CONVERT OR DIE

Washington Times

Dec 17 2011

Tehran delays execution to try to force Christian to apostatize

Pastor Yousef Nadarkhani, the Iranian Christian cleric facing death
for the crime of apostasy against an Islamic faith he never held,
has been given a temporary stay of execution. Iran’s top judge,
Ayatollah Sadegh Larijani, instructed presiding Judge Ghazi Kashani
to delay carrying out capital punishment for a year in order to give
time for Mr. Nadarkhani to recant Christianity and become a Muslim.

The Iranian regime may be responding to international pressure. Mr.

Nadarkhani’s case has become a prominent cause for the religious-rights
community. His story was first reported by Christian and Iranian
dissident websites, then by Western media outlets. On International
Human Rights Day, Dec. 9, Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton
called on “every government to release all prisoners of conscience
immediately and unconditionally, including Pastor Yousef Nadarkhani,
Father Thadeus Nguyen Van Ly [a Vietnamese Catholic priest], and the
2010 Nobel Peace Prize winner Liu Xiaobo [dissident writer in prison
in China].”

Mr. Nadarkhani was arrested in his home city of Rasht in October 2009
for questioning Islamic control of religious instruction of Iranian
children. He was first charged with illegal protest and later with
the more serious crimes of apostasy and evangelizing Muslims. He
was convicted in September 2010 and sentenced to death. His wife
was given life in prison, and his attorney, Iranian human-rights
lawyer Mohammed Ali Dadkhah, was convicted separately of “actions
and propaganda against the Islamic regime,” sentenced to nine years
in prison and barred from practicing law for a decade.

Mr. Nadarkhani appealed the death sentence, which was affirmed by
Iran’s Supreme Court in June 2011. Prosecutors acknowledged he had
never been a Muslim as an adult but said the apostasy law still applies
because he has “Islamic ancestry.” Hearings were held in September
to give Mr. Nadarkhani the opportunity to recant his faith and avoid
execution. When asked to repent his Christian beliefs, Mr.

Nadarkhani replied, “Repent means to return. What should I return to?”

The court pressed that he should return “to the religion of your
ancestors, Islam.” Mr. Nadarkhani said, “I cannot.”

The delay in carrying out the sentence buys time for the Iranian
regime, in hopes that Mr. Nadarkhani will either submit to Islam
or be forgotten by the international community and be executed in
secrecy, unnoticed. It’s unlikely he will succumb to pressure. In
a 2010 prison epistle, he discussed at length the centrality of
suffering and sacrifice to his faith. The true believer, he wrote,
“does not need to wonder for the fiery trial that has been set on
for him as though it were something unusual, but it pleases him to
participate in Christ’s suffering. Because the believer knows he will
rejoice in his glory.”

Mr. Nadakhani counsels those following his case to, “Retain your souls
with patience. For there is no man that doeth anything in secret.”

Iran’s mullahs should be certain that if they sacrifice him on the
gallows, the world will know, and sit in judgment.

Photo: Iranian Christians attend Christmas Mass at St. Grigor Armenian
Catholic Church in Tehran on Saturday, Dec. 25, 2010. Iran has arrested
about 70 Christians since Christmas in a crackdown that demonstrates
the limits of religious tolerance by Islamic leaders, who often boast
they provide room for other faiths. (AP Photo/Vahid Salemi)

TURKEY WARNS FRANCE OVER GENOCIDE BILL
By Daniel Dombey in Istanbul

December 16, 2011 11:12 pm

“These steps will lead to grave consequences for the cultural, economic
and political relations between France and Turkey,” he said, adding
that the bill would be seen as directly “targeting the Turkish state,
the Turkish nation and the Turkish community living in France”.

Ankara has always denied that the mass murders of hundreds of thousands
of Armenians almost a century ago constituted genocide.

Turkish officials have already said that the country’s ambassador to
France will be recalled for consultations if the bill is passed by
the French National Assembly, which is due to vote on it next week.

“If the law is adopted, it will torpedo the relationship,” said Sinan
Ulgen, a former Turkish diplomat at the Carnegie Europe think-tank,
who added that Turkey could respond by taking action against French
companies’ involvement in Turkish tenders. Turkish diplomats have
passed similar warnings to French executives.

Relations between Mr Erdogan and Mr Sarkozy are already extremely
tense, largely because of the French president’s strong opposition
to Turkey’s membership application to the EU. In an interview with
Le Monde newspaper this week, Mr Sarkozy argued that while the bloc
was for Europeans, Turkey was “mostly located in Asia Minor”.

The French national assembly has passed similar bills in the past,
which have later failed to win approval in the senate. This time,
however, Mr Sarkozy has closely involved himself in the issue,
arguing on a trip to Armenia in October that unless Turkey dropped its
“unacceptable” denial of a genocide, a law could be necessary.

Turkish politicians link his position to a bid for French Armenian
votes in advance of next year’s presidential elections.

“We know this is coming from the Elysee – that is the main point,”
said a spokesman for the Turkish embassy in Paris, who added that if
the legislation was passed all joint projects and all official visits
would be stopped.

The French government says the bill, which would set one year’s jail
as a penalty, is a parliamentary initiative. Paris emphasises Turkey’s
status as a “very important partner and ally”.

But the confrontation threatens to upset co-operation between Paris
and Ankara on Syria. Both countries have taken leading roles in the
international campaign to persuade President Bashar al-Assad to leave
power in Damascus.

It also comes as Turkey’s EU membership bid encounters ever greater
problems. Negotiations are practically frozen, and Turkey has vowed
to avoid all contact with Cyprus, which holds the EU’s revolving
presidency in the second half of next year). Meanwhile, Ankara was
angered by criticism of Turkey’s stance on the island in the communique
from last week’s EU summit.