Turkish Daily News

The recent conflict in Georgia is one of the reasons the Turkish president decided to accept his Armenian counterpart’s invitation to travel to Armenia, an Armenian expert said in a recent interview.

“Turkey thought it could pursue its policies in the Caucasus via its alliance with Azerbaijan and Georgia, excluding Armenia. However the latest developments have shaken the balances, so Turkey is searching for new opportunities,” Prof. Ruben Safrastyan from the National Academy of Sciences of Armenia told the Turkish Daily News this week. “Relations with Armenia have a great importance in this respect,” he maintained.

Defining Armenian President Serge Sarkisian’s invitation to his Turkish counterpart, Abdullah Gül, to watch a football game between the two countries’ national teams as an “important step,” Safrastyan said Armenia would never give up its claims of genocide in the Ottoman Empire.

“Genocide is an issue proven both by Armenia and the world. The documents that would make redundant all discussions are in the archives. The only problem is Turkey’s official history,” he said. Still Safrastyan maintained that the genocide problem should not hinder bilateral relations.

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Today.AZ

It is hard to say which principles Abdullah Gul adhered to while accepting Serzh Sargsyan’s invitation to watch the football match between Turkey and Armenia.

Perhaps, he tended to see the exotics, named Armenian football or the opposite side of Agridag, or have a pleasure of watching Serzh Sargsyan, supporting his team and perhaps to have these three entertainments together,

However, the only question, which is currently remains without answer is which will be the practical political use of this joint attendance of the match? No, do not think that I mean the usefulness for us, the only strategic allies of Turkey. How will Turkey benefit from it? The disavowal of the idea of recognition of “genocide” by the world Armenians? Never. They are living with it and on it. Armenians without the obsessional idea of recognition equal to Putin and Saakashvili, friendly hugging each others at a disco in Siktivkar. Thus, it is almost impossible.

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Today.AZ

Turkey’s current steps, if exactly President Abdullah Gul’s visit to Yerevan, remind of Iran’s actions in 1992, when this country rescued Armenia, said head of the center of political innovations and technologies Mubariz Ahmedoghlu at a press conference on the political results of August.

In September-October of 1992, when Azerbaijan put Armenia against the wall, Iran opened its borders with this country and provided it with fuel and food.

“In the aftermath, Levon Ter-Petrosyan wrote that if Iran opened the border three days later, Armenia would never exist as a country. Abdullah Gul does the same now and in the most critical moment, when Armenia, especially following the Russian-Georgian war, is fully isolated, he gives them the chance. The Turkish President could have waited a little with his visit to this country”, said Ahmedoghlu.

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Hurriyet

After years of diplomatic distance, Turkish President Abdullah Gul is set to head to Armenia to watch a football match between the two countries with his Armenian counterpart. Turkey hopes it will help thaw relations and strengthen its regional agenda, despite domestic accusations of a sell-out.

After weeks of puzzling over a rare, “low-profile” visit to Armenia, it is almost certain Gul will break a political taboo and honor his counterpart’s invitation to attend the Turk-Armenian football match this weekend.

But Turkish officials have refrained from revealing the final decision until the last moment.

Ahead of the president’s visit, a group of Turkish diplomats, headed by the deputy undersecretary of the Foreign Ministry, Unal Cevikoz, was scheduled to depart for Yerevan Wednesday morning.

The Turkish delegation is expected to sound out Armenia’s approach to the Turkish proposal for a new regional cooperation mechanism as well as laying the groundwork for the two president’s landmark meeting on the sidelines of the match, amid security fears and strong reactions from Armenian nationalists — the Tashnaks, the Turkish Daily News (TDN) wrote on Wednesday.

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