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Two Armenian MPs meet with Turkish parliament speaker

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  • Two Armenian MPs meet with Turkish parliament speaker

    ArmenPress
    Dec 1 2004

    TWO ARMENIAN MPs MEET WITH TURKISH PARLIAMENT SPEAKER

    YEREVAN, DECEMBER 1, ARMENPRESS: Two members of the Armenian
    parliament met with the chairman of the Turkish parliament when they
    were attending a meeting of the Black Sea Economic Cooperation (BSEC)
    in Turkish Antalya on November 23-25.
    Vladimir Badalian and Mekhak Mkhitarian, the two Armenian
    lawmakers, said today in Yerevan the 30-minute meeting had been
    initiated by Bullent Arinc, the chairman of Turkish parliament, who
    spoke about the obstacles preventing the opening of the border with
    Armenia and lifting its decade-long blockade.
    The Armenians quoted Arinc as saying that he regretted the tragic
    events that had occurred at the beginning of the 20-th century but
    disagreed with Armenians' classification that it was a genocide. He
    said Armenians use the term excessively to portray it in a manner
    that suits their interests, which cannot be accepted by Turkey.
    Another obstacle preventing normalization of ties with Armenia,
    according to Bullent Arinc is Armenia's unwillingness to pull out its
    troops from the occupied Azeri regions. Incidentally, he accused the
    OSCE Minsk group chairmen of inactivity, adding also that Turkey
    stands ready to get involved in the Karabagh conflict regulation
    process.
    Arinc said Turkey wants friendly and warm relations with all its
    neighbors, including also Armenia, which was hailed by Armenian
    lawmakers, who said Armenia too is interested in such relations.
    Vladimir Badalian said they argued that prior to normalization of
    relations both countries should establish diplomatic relations. They
    also disagreed with Arinc's arguments that the OSCE Minsk group has
    failed to carry out its mission, saying they could not see any other
    international peace brokers that could work more effectively.
    Armenians also argued that the return of Azerbaijani territories
    could not be put forth as a precondition for normalization of ties,
    emphasizing the importance of all-level contacts between
    representatives of the two nations. They also said that though the
    international recognition of the genocide is on the agenda of
    Armenia's foreign policy Yerevan does not make its recognition by
    Turkey as a condition for normal ties, adding also that in general
    Armenia is not against Turkey's EU membership.
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