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Αρχική arrow newsitems arrow Armenian President Sargsyan: Turkey Deadlocked Talks claiming Karabagh but Final Positions Time came

Armenian President Sargsyan: Turkey Deadlocked Talks claiming Karabagh but Final Positions Time came

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Wednesday, 22 June 2011

 

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The President of Armenia, which will chair the CoE in a year and a half (beginning of 2013), Serzh Sargsyan, speaking to Journalists in Strasbourg, including "EuroFora", stressed that "Time has come for Final Positions" on the Nagorno-Karabach issue, that Turkey exploited in order to "provoke a Deadlock" in earlier attempts to normalize relations with Armenia, whose "illegal Blockade" by Ankara "must end", as he denounced afterwards in his speech to CoE's PanEuropean Parliamentary Assembly, at the eve of a Top Level meeting at Kazan in Russia, hosted by President Medvedev, for Peace-Talks in the framework of OSCE's "Minsk" process, comprising also France and USA.  
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-  "I'm ready to travel to Kazan in good faith and Good Expectations to engage in Constructive Talks", even if it's true that this has been a "rather Long Process of Talks", which "has Many Issues", Sargsyan replied to a question on Friday's forthcoming event.


- But, "the Positions of the Parties are Clear", and now, "I think that the Time has come for the parties to express their Final Positions on the Fundamental Principles" for a Soluion of the Nagorno-Karabach issue, the Armenian President stressed.
- However, "we'll Wait to See how the Talks actually End", he concluded carefully.
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- Normalization of relations between Turkey and Armenia should have resulted to a re-establishment of Diplomatic Relations, and at the Opening of the Border line, between the two countries, he reminded afterwards, speaking of the process which had started "2 years ago".


- But, on the contrary, it resulted into a Deadlock, for the clear reason that Turkey came back to its previous practice of raising Preliminary Conditions", and "didn't honor its commitment to sign the Protocols", Sargsyan denounced.


- "Having faced this Wall of Deception and Suspicion, (by Turkey) I regret to say that I can't predict when we might be anew able to seize a new opportunity. That's the Truth", the Armenian President warned.  While it was Armenia who had launched this process for peaceful coexistence, on the contrary, the other party, Turkey, still doesn't feel that it's necessary, Sargsyan criticized.


 - Instead of that, Ankara is engaged in a Brutal Negationism of the Armenian Genocide committed in the Turkish-Ottoman Empire on 1915. But, in the meantime, Armenians, throughout the World, always try to bring positions against these Crimes, focused in an International Recognition of the Armenian Genocide, he added.

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- However, "this illegal Blockade of Armenia" by Turkey, "must End !", he stressed."We can't leave this Problem Pending for the Generations to come, without any normalization of relations between Armenia and Turkey, which is important for peace and cooperation in the region, reiterated in conclusion Sargsyan, who is notoriously facing a strong political Opposition inside Armenia for his past attempts of rapprochemen to Turkey, as, among others, f.ex. a particularly Critical intervention of Dissident Armenian MEP Mrs Zaruhi Postanjyan. Meanwhile, Parliamentarian Elections are due in 2012, and Presidentials on 2013.
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 The Turkish Government has been officialy and repeatedly asked by the EU to normalize its relations also with Cyprus, but Ankara still persists to refuse to do so, even at the risk to provoke sometimes serious problems in the cooperation between EU and NATO, (whose 60th Anniversary, Heads of State/Government Summit, on April 2009 in Strasbourg, Turkey notoriously .. blocked for almost 2 Days, with various claims against the election of its New Secretary General, former Danish Prime Minister, Rasmussen : See "EuroFora"s NewsReports from that Historical NATO Summit, which coincided also with the 1st visit of USA President Obama to Europe).
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Turkey had notoriously used the Talks' with Armenia as a Timely pretext to claim that it would be making "Progress" on its EU Obligations, at an earlier, crucial moment, precisely when an important EU Decision on EU-Turkey Negotiations was due. But, afterwards, Ankara apparently let the process be blocked, once Turkey obtained what it wanted, after a very Mediatised meeting in Geneva...
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Meanwhile, an official "Written Declaration",  signed by 30 MEPs from all CoE Assembly's Political Groups and from various CoE Member Countries, (including f.ex.  France, EU chair Hungary, Switzerland, Czech and Slovak Republics, Greece, Romania, Lithuania, San Marino, Armenia, Sweden, etc), was circulating inside CoE's Assembly in Strasbourg, denouncing that Karabach ("Artsah"), in fact, "was never a part of the Azerbaijani Republic, that existed from 1918-1920", to which, nowadays modern "Azerbaijan declared itself the Successor".


- "It was (only) because of a Kemalist (Attaturk) - Bolshevik (Stalin) "Deal" (of 1922) that Artshak had become part of Soviet Azerbaijan" only, from which, "in 1990, the People of Karabagh Voted "Yes" to Independence, through a Referendum that was (reportedly) observed and recognized by numerous International Observers", according to the Liberty given then by the Post-Soviet CIS to all its former Entities to freely choose between remaining part of the CIS and/or Russia, or peacefully declaring their Independence, (as, f.ex., Azerbaijan itself did). "But, Refusing to accept the Arstsakh Armenians' lawful exercice of their Right to Self-Determination, Azerbaijan launched a large-scale Attack, which ended with the 1994 Ceasefire", the MEPs' Declaration notes, speaking also of a "2006 Constitutional Referendum" and asking "International Recognition and Membership in all International Organisations".


The claim that Nagorno-Karabach had never been Azerbaidjan's Land, had already been made in CoE's Assembly by former Armenian President Kotcharian some years earlier in Strasbourg. But the current President Sargsyan didn't say anything about it this time.


Turkey has notoriously been using the Nagorno-Karabach issue, and Azeri as well as Armenian People's sufferings from the unresolved conflict, in an indirect, covert but evident Propaganda which systematically  disguises it as a kind of ..."Clone" of Cyprus' Occupied Territories, obviously copying Nicosia's well-known 1974 complaints (mainly about Refugees/Displaced Persons, need to respect Territorial Integrity, withdraw Foreign Occupation Troops, etc), with a Delay of more than 20 Years later, (after the Middle of the 1990ies), but without conviencing anyone inside European, PanEuropean or International Organizations...
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+ "EuroFora" had agreed with Sargsyan's Press Attaché for a short question/reply, but when he kindly left us some seconds to raise our question, occupied to conclude notes of Sargsyan's previous statement (See supra), we didn't seize on time the given opportunity, despite our willingness, as the Armenian President apparently understood, smiling kindly to "EuroFora" after his speech at CoE's Assembly, while leaving Strasbourg after an initial, exceptionaly brief visit before Yerevan takes over CoE's rotating Chairmanship, in one year and a half...


Meanwhie, CoE's Secretary General, Thornbjorn Jagland said to Journalists in Strasbourg, including "EuroFora", that he thanked the Armenian President Sargsyan also for "News regarding the forthcoming meeting of the Minsk process", on efforts to solve the Nagorno-Karabagh issue, and observed that "for us (CoE) Armenia is a very important Country, located in a very important Region of Europe", between Urals and Ararat Mountains at the European part of Caucasus.

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    The recent paradox of freezing EU Talks with front-runner Croatia, while continuing controversial EU - Turkey talks, despite Zagreb's acceptance of Refugees' Human Rights to return, that Ankara refuses fex. in Cyprus, while both have "Good Neighborhood" problems vis a vis Slovenia, or Greece, Cyprus and Armenia respectively, can it be justified by the non-fullfilment of EU criteria, as Slovenia says, or, is it "Double Standards" ?    

The question became unavoidable after statements by Presidents of Slovenia and Croatia, Tuerk and Mesic, respectively, to "EuroFora", exclusively or among Strasbourg's journalists this week at the CoE, on the sidelines of its 2009 Summer University for Political Schools, which topically brought them together as successive key-note speakers.


    Comming only a few Months before EU checks Turkey's compliance to its commitments on Cyprus, etc., scheduled for December 2009, this obviously has a special importance for the coherence of EU Enlargement's principles.

     Suspension of EU Negotiations is a normal consequence in case of a Candidate Country's failure to fullfil EU Conditions, such as "Good Neighborhood relations", stressed at first Slovenian President Danilo Tuerk, current CoE's chair.

    But, regarding EU's Criteria,  there shouldn't be any "Double Standards",  reacted Croatian President Stjepan Mesic, commenting the fact that Turkey's controversial EU negotiations continue, while they were recently "freezed" in the case of Croatia, an "unquestionably European Country", which oficially accepts to respect Refugees Human Rights, contrary to Ankara's notorious refusals or reluctance.                                       

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                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                           - "EU itself has set as a Criterium (for EU Enlargement) the "Good Neighborhood relations",  and their absence justifies the "Suspension" EU Negotiations, (f.ex. with Croatia), because of a Border dispute affecting the territorial integrity of an EU Member Country, stressed Slovenian President, Danilo Tuerk, CoE's Chairman in office (May - November 2009), speaking to Journalists in Strasbourg including "EuroFora".    

Questioned earlier what "consequences on EU's Enlargement policy" can have the "Ban on EU Membership Negotiations", imposed to Croatia, Tuerk replied that "this question comes down to the fulfillement of (EU) Criteria for membership. One has to look at each Candidate Country ., from the point of view whether it fullfils the Criteria that EU has set. One of them are Good Neighborhood Relations, I'd like to remind. And also, there are other factors, such as Justice, Home affairs, Rule of Law, and others".


    - "Now, ..Candidate Countries are at Different Levels of fulfillement of Criteria", he observed.

    - " Croatia is obviously the closest to that. I'm rather optimistic : I think that in the coming Months we'll have an opportunity to look at all these issues constructively and hopefully we'll be able to make progress". "My main concern, at this point, is the situation in Bosnia : We haven't seen enough progres domesticaly. We haven't seen enough during ..political parties within their country.We need a New Energy, a new energetic move towards the Candidature for EU membership. "Other (Western Balkan) Countries (Serbia, Montenegro, FYROM, Albania) have been making soaring Progress, and I think that they should be ready, in a few Years, for the Candidate status".

    - "As far as the Western Balkans are concerned, .. nobody should be left outside" the EU, Slovenian's President concluded, ommitting to mention Turkey's controversial EU bid.

    - "This process may be seen as Slow, but..  Slovenia has also has also been exposed to various "Booms of Slowness" in our accession period. But now we can say that the process was relatively quick, because changes which occur after becoming EU member, are quite large, and they require proper Preparations before the (EU) membership becomes a new factor, an impacting line for a new (EU) member country".
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EU "Solidarity" ?
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Slovenian statements made some participants from certain 3rd Countries as FYROM, etc. claim that "the Principle of EU Solidarity" would "produce a.. rising European Union Nationalism (sic !), against Non-EU Countries", as they said, asking unhappy foreign countries to form a "bloc" to exert pressure on the EU...    

But Croatian President Stjepan Mesic dismissed that, supporting "EU Integration", "after the Economy also in Political" issues, as "the achievement" of our times. In EU there is "diversity, but it's United", he stressed, "EU has to be United so that it can become a central factor of Peace" also at the surrounding areas, he replied.

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Speaking later exclusively to "EuroFora", the experienced twice President of Croatia, former President of the International "Non-Aligned" movement, denounced "Double Standards" in the way EU treats recently Croatia compared to Turkey :   

 - "I think that there shouldn't be Double Standards", stressed the Croatian President, in reply to a Question comparing the freeze of EU - Croatia talks, with the continuation of EU - Turkey talks, despite the fact that Croatia is an "unquestionably European country", while Turkey's EU bid is notoriously controversial.


    Mesic was reacting to the observation that, even if he confirmed his "respect of Refugees' Human Rights to return, etc. (See infra), nevertheless, EU talks are suspended with Croatia.. While for oher, controversial candidates, who refuse to respect Refugees' Rights to return, etc., as fex. Turkey does in occupied Cyprus and elsewhere, EU negotiations continue".

    - "I believe that Croatia's accession will confirm that all European Countries who fulfill all of the Conditions and achieve European Standards, have to join the EU. There shouldn't be any Double Standards", went on to add in reply President Mesic.

    In this relation, Croatia's President found "of paramount importance", CoE's "mechanisms enforcing ECHR's judgements"
    
    - "On Refugees and Displaced persons, the process will be completed only after the last person demanding to return will be allowed to do so !", President Mesic Croatia stressed earlier, setting a general standard of obvious importance also for otherr candidates, as f.ex. Turkey, often accused to exclude or heavily restrict Greek Cypriot Displaced persons' return to their Family Homes and ancestral land, provoke difficulties to Turkish-Kurd IDPs return to their home regions at the South-East, etc.

    Some "2.000 People are still reported Missing" in former Yugoslavia, for some Years, (as in Cyprus, modern Europe's oldest case, for 3 Decades. Nagorno-Karabach, Tcecnya in Russia, etc, more recently), and Investigations "will only be completed after establishing the fate of the last one of them", he added.
    
    Speaking earlier on "War Crimes", President Mesic stressed that "Leaders are responsible for (the) Wars (of the Past), not the People", and called against Impunity :  "Individuals have to be held Responsible for Crimes. International Penal Tribunals have to persecute those individuals", perpetrators of War Crimes, he underlined.

    Such statements naturally made Mesic rather popular at ECHR, whose President, French EuroJudge, Professor Jean-Paul Costa, looked particularly smiling when he welcomed him later on Wednesday afternoon, after Slovenian President Daniko Tuerk earlier this week.
           

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