Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan touched upon the normalization of Armenia-Azerbaijan and Armenia-Turkey relations, saying that Turkey has been committed to establishing peace in the South Caucasus and creating a zone of joint prosperity in the region since the beginning.
Radar Armenia spoke to Turkologist Nelly Minasyan on the topic.
–How would you comment on Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan’s reference?
-Turkey’s unilateral peace is obvious, supporting Azerbaijan and establishing the status quo established by force, which it currently has. Turkey is not a neutral mediator; on the contrary, it has gone to strengthen its positions in the region entirely through the use of force.
–Sargis Khandanyan, Chairman of the Standing Committee on Foreign Relations of the National Assembly, said that the process of normalizing relations between Armenia and Turkey will soon bring positive results. What positive expectations can we expect?
-The positive result envisioned by the Armenian side is the opening of the border and the establishment of diplomatic relations. However, the border remains closed at the moment.
-The Turkish President has stated that they are ready to normalize relations with Armenia when Azerbaijan and Armenia sign a final peace agreement. We can say that everything depends on Azerbaijan. How would you comment on this?
-No, I have repeatedly said that Azerbaijan is, in fact, a tool in Turkey’s hands here, in terms of not establishing relations, delaying the opening of the border. In other words, if the Turkish President decides to establish relations, they will be based at least on the interim agreements reached. Since we do not have that, everything else they associate with signing a peace agreement with Azerbaijan is political maneuvering and just excuses to stall for time, not to normalize relations.
