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Armenia And Turkey To Restore Ties

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  • Armenia And Turkey To Restore Ties

    ARMENIA AND TURKEY TO RESTORE TIES

    Aljazeera.net
    Aug 31 2009
    Qatar

    Armenia and Turkey have agreed to establish diplomatic ties and reopen
    their border under a plan to end nearly a century of hostility.

    The neighbours, whose history of animosity stems from the mass
    killing of Armenians by Ottoman Turks during the first world war,
    said on Monday that they would hold domestic consultations before
    setting up diplomatic ties for the first time.

    "The political consultations will be completed within six weeks,
    following which the two protocols will be signed and submitted to
    the respective parliaments for the ratification on each side," the
    countries' foreign ministries said in a statement issued jointly with
    mediator Switzerland.

    "Both sides will make their best efforts for the timely progression
    of the ratification in line with their constitutional and legal
    procedures."

    Mass killings

    Copies of the protocols said the border will reopen within two months
    of being ratified, the Reuters news agency said.

    Turkey closed the border in 1993 as a political move in support
    of Azerbaijan, who was fighting Armenian-supported separatists at
    the time.

    Some historians have estimated that 1.5mn Armenians were killed by
    Ottoman Turks at the end of the Ottoman empire.

    Ankara rejects claims that the killings amounted to genocide, saying
    instead that Turks and Armenians were killed in high numbers.

    The plan to normalise ties was initially announced in April amid
    warming relations.

    Abdullah Gul, the Turkish prime minister, attended a World Cup
    qualifying football match between the two countries in the Armenian
    capital Yerevan and Serzh Sarksyan, the Armenian president, plans to
    make the return trip for a match in October.

    But he had said that he wanted significant progress on the border
    issue first.

    The rift has been an obstacle to Turkey's bid to join the EU and has
    antagonised Ankara's relations with the US.

    The restoring of ties is expected to aid Turkey's regional influence
    and give Armenia access to Turkish and European markets.
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