Armenian-Turkish reconciliation wrecked by Ankara - MP
19.02.2015,
15:26
The process of Armenian-Turkish reconciliation has been wrecked by Ankara, Levon Martirosyan, an MP from the ruling Republican party of Armenia, said Thursday commenting on the withdrawal of Armenian-Turkish protocols by Armenian President Serzh Sargsyan from the National Assembly.
YEREVAN, February 19. /ARKA/. The process of Armenian-Turkish reconciliation has been wrecked by Ankara, Levon Martirosyan, an MP from the ruling Republican party of Armenia, said Thursday commenting on the withdrawal of Armenian-Turkish protocols by Armenian President Serzh Sargsyan from the National Assembly.
Martirosyan was quoted by Novosti-Armenia as saying that this withdrawal doesn't mean that reconciliation will be impossible in the future.
«At least we showed that we are ready to embark on Armenian-Turkish settlement and that we are tuned positively despite many political and historic problems,» the lawmaker said.
Martirosyan thinks the Turkish side is afraid of the whole process fearing that there may be consequences.
Vardan Khachatryan, an expert, said on his side told journalists that he was opposed to this process from the very beginning.
«I've always said that Armenia should withdraw from this process that is very dangerous for attempts to connect Armenian-Turkish relations with Karabakh conflict settlement,» he said. «This is the biggest trouble that may have adverse impacts on Armenia's foreign policy.»
Turkey and Armenia have had no diplomatic ties since Armenia became independent from the Soviet Union in 1991.
Turkey closed its border with Armenia in 1993 in a show of support for its ally, Azerbaijan, which had a dispute with Armenia over Nagorno-Karabakh, the ethnic Armenian enclave of Azerbaijan.
There are several sensitive issues complicating the establishment of normal relations between the two countries, particularly Ankara’s blatant support of Azerbaijan in the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict resolution process and Turkey’s refusal to acknowledge the mass killings of Armenians the Ottoman Empire as genocide.
The thaw in relations between the two countries began in 2008 at the Armenian president's initiative. In 2009 October 10 Armenia and Turkey signed "Protocol on the Establishment of Diplomatic Relations" and "Protocol on the Development of Bilateral Relations" in Zurich which were to be ratified by the parliaments of both countries.
However, on 22 April 2010, the President of Armenia signed a decree suspending the ratification of the protocols, stating that Turkey was not ready to continue the process. -0-
