Tweet
PanARMENIAN.Net
In 1946 Turkey was obliged to return the Armenian provinces
The Treaty of Moscow of 1921 was signed between Turkey
and Soviet Russia for a-25-year term.
17.03.2007 GMT+04:00
On March 16, 1921 a treaty signed between Soviet Russia and Turkey
stipulated the seizure of three Armenian provinces; Kars, Nakhichevan
and Surmalu, in favor of Turkey and Azerbaijan. The preamble of the
treaty states, `In the present Treaty by the term Turkey territories
included in the National Turkish Pact of January 28, 1336 (1920),
developed and proclaimed by the Ottoman Chamber of Deputies in
Constantinople and communicated to the press and all States are
understood.'
/PanARMENIAN.Net/ In the fall of 1921 on the bases of the Treaty of
Moscow the quadripartite Treaty of Kars, which became the edited
version of the Treaty of Moscow, was signed between Turkey, Armenia,
Azerbaijan and Georgia. Signing of the Treaty of Kars is quite logical
also because the Treaty of Moscow was signed on behalf of Russia and
formally didn't relate to the Transcaucasian countries yet. In 1921
the `sovietization' of Armenia, Georgia and Azerbaijan finished but it
was still very unsteady for the Russian Soviet Federative Socialist
Republic to entrust these republics to sign international, moreover
such significant treaties on their own. According to the second
article of the Treaty Kars and Surmalu provinces of Armenia, together
with the Mount Ararat passed to Turkey, and Nakhichevan passed to
Azerbaijan as its protectorate. Thus at the expense of Armenia
Turkey's, Azerbaijani's and Georgia's appetites were satisfied.
It is worth mentioning, that the third article of the Treaty speaks
about belonging of Nakhichevan and is closed with the following
phrase; `with no right to be passed to a third party', where by `the
third party' Iran is understood. However in the Treaty of Kars this
phrase was omitted. By the fall of 1921 Iran didn't conceal any more
its irritation at the formation of a republic called `Azerbaijan',
which claimed to unification with an Iranian Turkish-speaking province
of the same name and to establishing a united `Soviet Azerbaijan' with
a population of almost 20 million people.
But the most interesting thing is that according to many archive
materials the Treaty was signed for a-25-year term. In 1925 the RSFSR
Ambassador to Turkey Vinogradov insisted on denunciation of the
Russian-Turkish Treaty of 1921 in his official note, announcing that
Russia is willing to realize it in one-sided order. At the same time,
according to Turkish sources, Ambassador Vinogradov in his oral
conversation in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs explains, `We can't
wait 25 years and thus we signed the Russian-Turkish Treaty because at
that time we were weak. Now we are strong and we insist on
reestablishment of the Armenian borders'. One of the well-known
Turkish statesmen of those times, Qemal Ataturk's successor Ismet
Inenu was quick in his response; `The new country needs to keep to its
international responsibilities and in 25 years' term Turkey will of
course return these territories. In this way the belonging of the
three Armenian provinces legally in Turkey's and Azerbaijan's favor
since March 16, 1946 is a historical nonsense.
Nevertheless after 1921 the first two-sided official document between
USSR and Turkey announcing, that the parties do not have any mutual
territorial claims is the international treaty, signed in August 1978
during the official visit of the Turkish Prime Minister Byulent
Edjevit to Moscow.
There is one more important article in the treaty, which for some
unknown reasons doesn't get any attention. `To provide the opening of
the Channels and the freedom for passing of mercantile ships for all
nations,' states one of the articles. The Bosporus and Dardanelle
Channels have always been of great significance for the Turkish home
policy, and not to make use of them would be senseless, particularly
regarding the Armenian Question. If taken into consideration that the
conditions stipulated by the above mentioned article are rather
favorable for Russia too, signing such treaties is not excluded in
future either.
«PanARMENIAN.Net» analytical department
In 1946 Turkey was obliged to return the Armenian provinces
The Treaty of Moscow of 1921 was signed between Turkey
and Soviet Russia for a-25-year term.
17.03.2007 GMT+04:00
On March 16, 1921 a treaty signed between Soviet Russia and Turkey
stipulated the seizure of three Armenian provinces; Kars, Nakhichevan
and Surmalu, in favor of Turkey and Azerbaijan. The preamble of the
treaty states, `In the present Treaty by the term Turkey territories
included in the National Turkish Pact of January 28, 1336 (1920),
developed and proclaimed by the Ottoman Chamber of Deputies in
Constantinople and communicated to the press and all States are
understood.'
/PanARMENIAN.Net/ In the fall of 1921 on the bases of the Treaty of
Moscow the quadripartite Treaty of Kars, which became the edited
version of the Treaty of Moscow, was signed between Turkey, Armenia,
Azerbaijan and Georgia. Signing of the Treaty of Kars is quite logical
also because the Treaty of Moscow was signed on behalf of Russia and
formally didn't relate to the Transcaucasian countries yet. In 1921
the `sovietization' of Armenia, Georgia and Azerbaijan finished but it
was still very unsteady for the Russian Soviet Federative Socialist
Republic to entrust these republics to sign international, moreover
such significant treaties on their own. According to the second
article of the Treaty Kars and Surmalu provinces of Armenia, together
with the Mount Ararat passed to Turkey, and Nakhichevan passed to
Azerbaijan as its protectorate. Thus at the expense of Armenia
Turkey's, Azerbaijani's and Georgia's appetites were satisfied.
It is worth mentioning, that the third article of the Treaty speaks
about belonging of Nakhichevan and is closed with the following
phrase; `with no right to be passed to a third party', where by `the
third party' Iran is understood. However in the Treaty of Kars this
phrase was omitted. By the fall of 1921 Iran didn't conceal any more
its irritation at the formation of a republic called `Azerbaijan',
which claimed to unification with an Iranian Turkish-speaking province
of the same name and to establishing a united `Soviet Azerbaijan' with
a population of almost 20 million people.
But the most interesting thing is that according to many archive
materials the Treaty was signed for a-25-year term. In 1925 the RSFSR
Ambassador to Turkey Vinogradov insisted on denunciation of the
Russian-Turkish Treaty of 1921 in his official note, announcing that
Russia is willing to realize it in one-sided order. At the same time,
according to Turkish sources, Ambassador Vinogradov in his oral
conversation in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs explains, `We can't
wait 25 years and thus we signed the Russian-Turkish Treaty because at
that time we were weak. Now we are strong and we insist on
reestablishment of the Armenian borders'. One of the well-known
Turkish statesmen of those times, Qemal Ataturk's successor Ismet
Inenu was quick in his response; `The new country needs to keep to its
international responsibilities and in 25 years' term Turkey will of
course return these territories. In this way the belonging of the
three Armenian provinces legally in Turkey's and Azerbaijan's favor
since March 16, 1946 is a historical nonsense.
Nevertheless after 1921 the first two-sided official document between
USSR and Turkey announcing, that the parties do not have any mutual
territorial claims is the international treaty, signed in August 1978
during the official visit of the Turkish Prime Minister Byulent
Edjevit to Moscow.
There is one more important article in the treaty, which for some
unknown reasons doesn't get any attention. `To provide the opening of
the Channels and the freedom for passing of mercantile ships for all
nations,' states one of the articles. The Bosporus and Dardanelle
Channels have always been of great significance for the Turkish home
policy, and not to make use of them would be senseless, particularly
regarding the Armenian Question. If taken into consideration that the
conditions stipulated by the above mentioned article are rather
favorable for Russia too, signing such treaties is not excluded in
future either.
«PanARMENIAN.Net» analytical department