Turkey alters stand on Armenia?July 27, 2009 - 12:21 AMT PanARMENIAN.Net - Turkey's Chief EU Negotiator, Egemen Bagis said the reconstruction of the Armenian Church on Akhtamar island will be accomplished before Serzh Sargsyan's arrival in Turkey."We will finish the reconstruction before the Armenian President's arrival and inaugurate a cross on the Church," Bagis said. "All religions are respected. If Europe puts no bans on opening mosques, so why should we do so? Besides, this church will attract Armenians here, what will help develop tourism." Bagis said closed borders are the vestige of communism. "We say Greeks are bad, Kurds are bad too. How long will we be at loggerheads? We should put an end to animosity." he said, Hurriyet reported. Top stories Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev arrived in Moscow on April 22 to hold talks with Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin. Authorities said a total of 192 Azerbaijani troops were killed and 511 were wounded during Azerbaijan’s offensive. In 2023, the Azerbaijani government will increase the country’s defense budget by more than 1.1 billion manats ($650 million). The bill, published on Monday, is designed to "eliminate the shortcomings of an unreasonably broad interpretation of the key concept of "compatriot". Partner news | Concept to complete Yerevan Cascade discussed at city hall A conceptual proposal to complete the Cascade complex in downtown Yerevan has been presented by Jean-Michel Wilmotte. Pashinyan visits flood-hit region Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan on Saturday, June 8 visited the disaster area in the Lori province. €3.5 mln EU grant to support justice reforms in Armenia The European Union has paid €3.5 mln grant to Armenia within a €11mln program on Support to Justice Reforms. Yerevan reacts to Baku’s proposal to see Minsk Group abolition Alen Simonyan has declared that Armenia is taking steps aimed at concluding a peace treaty with Azerbaijan. |