AZG/am
2 June 04
Turkey’s Official Position and the Position of the Armenian Opposition Inadvertently Coincide
The policy adopted by the official Ankara towards Yerevan is anti-Armenian and hostile and it wasn’t changed since 1991. Perhaps, the strategy of the anti-Armenian policy has changed. If before
1994 Turkey was obviously making military threats to Armenia it has blocked, after the Karabagh war, feeling the uselessness of the abovementioned strategy transferred the anti-Armenian struggle to the sphere of propaganda. Turkey still keeps refusing to establish diplomatic relations with Armenia, conditioning this with several preconditions. Hence, on conditions of the current Armenian-Turkish relations (read: absence of relations) RA President doesn’t find it expedient to participate in NATO’s regular summit envisaged in Istanbul on June 28-29.
Firstly, the press secretary of RA President, then RA Foreign Minister Vartan Oskanian explained the decision of the president not to leave for Istanbul: notwithstanding the numerous statements made by the Armenian side to improve the relations with Turkey no positive results are fixed. Particularly, Oskanian repeated that Yerevan is ready to establish diplomatic relations with Ankara without any pre-condition.
Abdullah Gul, Turkish Prime and Foreign Minister, commenting on the decision of the Armenian president on May 20 in Moscow, reminded, “this is a NATO summit”. “Armenia has an office in Istanbul within the framework of the Black Sea economic cooperation. Perhaps, Armenia will close it?” Gul said.
In fact, the Turkish Foreign Minister tries to condition the current
Armenian- Turkish relations by the refusal of Kocharian to go to Istanbul. On the other hand, Giul keeps reminding that the opening of the Armenian-Turkish border is possible only in case Armenian forces liberate “the occupied Azerbaijani territory.”
The Gumhuriet, one of the Turkish central newspapers reminds in one of the articles of May 30 issue (“The Relations with Yerevan are
Stuck”) that “the process of naturalizing expected in Ankara â^À^Ó Yerevan relations can’t begin, as Armenia takes no positives steps in Nagorno Karabakh’s and Turkey’s issues. Ankara defines that on current conditions the establishment of diplomatic relations and opening of the borders will not be included in the agenda.”
The Gumhuriet also emphasizes that in Istanbul Turkey, Armenia and Azerbaijan envisaged to discuss the issue of Nagorno Karabagh and the suggestion of Baku to call off the Armenian forces (from the territory of Azerbaijan: editor). “Thus, Kocharian makes us think that he is not going to discuss the topic,” the newspaper writes. Whatever comments are made, one thing is obvious. In the international practice, when the two states have no diplomatic relations, according to the given situation, one can participate on a lower level on one or more stages in the arrangement taking place in the country with no relations.
Thus, the refusal of Kocharian to go to Istanbul is no queer phenomenon for the diplomatic practice.
More likely, the queer is the coincidence of the official Turkish and Armenian opposition’s (that of its part) positions.
If the Turkish officials and the Press use the refusal of Kocharian to go to Istanbul for Ankara’s political agenda, as if Armenia is unwilling and doesn’ t establish relations with Ankara, the Armenian opposition uses this fact to remind of its existence to the home and foreign political forces. What would be the achievement of Kocharian if he went to Istanbul? We merely have to remember that since 1991 the visits of the Armenian high ranked officials to Istanbul or Ankara didn’t yield anything. On the contrary, Turkey demands more preconditions for the establishment of diplomatic relations with Armenia.
By Tatoul Hakobian.
Yorumlar kapatıldı.