Erdogan: Turkey is resolved to move forward with the normalization process

April 8, 2010 - 14:30 AMT

PanARMENIAN.Net - Turkish Foreign Ministry Undersecretary Feridun Sinirlioglu, who conducted talks in Yerevan as the Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s special envoy, delivered Erdogan’s letter to Armenian officials and was exploring the possibilities of an Erdogan-Sargsyan meeting, Hurriyet reported.

Diplomatic sources said “the letter included Turkey’s commitment to the two protocols signed between Ankara and Yerevan in October 2009 to establish diplomatic relations, Turkey’s resolve to move forward with the normalization process and Ankara’s readiness to discuss ways to remove the existing obstacles.”

Analysts welcomed the Turkish initiative to send an envoy to Yerevan as a willingness to keep bilateral channels open in a “multi-actor game.”

“This is an important initiative before Erdogan’s Washington visit, both to keep the pulse in Yerevan and to show Ankara’s readiness to engage in direct dialogue with Armenia,” said Kamer Kasim, from the International Strategic Research Organization.

The Armenian-Turkish Protocols

The Protocols aimed at normalization of bilateral ties and opening of the border between Armenia and Turkey were signed in Zurich by Armenian Foreign Minister Edward Nalbandian and his Turkish counterpart Ahmet Davutoglu on October 10, 2009, after a series of diplomatic talks held through Swiss mediation.

On January 12, 2010, the Constitutional Court of the Republic of Armenia found the protocols conformable to the country’s Organic Law.

Commenting on the CC ruling, the Turkish Ministry of Foreign Affairs said that “it contains preconditions and restrictive provisions which impair the letter and spirit of the Protocols.” ”The decision undermines the very reason for negotiating these Protocols as well as their fundamental objective. This approach cannot be accepted on our part. Turkey, in line with its accustomed allegiance to its international commitments, maintains its adherence to the primary provisions of these Protocols. We expect the same allegiance from the Armenian government,” the Ministry said.