The Daily Star: Armenian President has taken bold and necessary step

February 15, 2010 - 21:07 AMT

PanARMENIAN.Net -
In a move that deserves praise and support, Armenian President Serzh Sargsyan moved forward again to normalize relations with Turkey, The Daily Star Lebanese newspaper reported.

“Sargsyan submitted to the Armenian Parliament two protocols which spring from the deal he signed with Turkish President Abdullah Gul last October; the two protocols would open bilateral diplomatic relations and open the countries’ shared border.

The Armenian President has taken a bold and necessary step. It is time to move forward; instead of living in the past, this region needs understanding and reconciliation.

For its part, Armenia has a well of untapped potential, whether as a passageway for a natural-gas pipeline or in its historically talented populace.

The Turkish-Armenian reconciliation should be acknowledged as an example of the way forward, of a better alternative to the seething tensions. We need more leaders willing to stick their necks out to end tensions and conflicts.

Sargsyan’s brave move might not succeed – the deal still has to be approved by both countries’ legislatures – but no matter how this episode ends, the president deserves recognition for helping escape the cell of the past and moving toward peace and reconciliation,” the article said.

The Armenian-Turkish Protocols

The Protocols aimed at normalization of bilateral ties and opening of the border between Armenia and Turkey were signed in Zurich by Armenian Foreign Minister Edward Nalbandian and his Turkish counterpart Ahmet Davutoglu on October 10, 2009, after a series of diplomatic talks held through Swiss mediation.

On January 12, 2010, the Constitutional Court of the Republic of Armenia found the protocols conformable to the country’s Organic Law.

Commenting on the CC ruling, the Turkish Ministry of Foreign Affairs said that “it contains preconditions and restrictive provisions which impair the letter and spirit of the Protocols.” ”The decision undermines the very reason for negotiating these Protocols as well as their fundamental objective. This approach cannot be accepted on our part. Turkey, in line with its accustomed allegiance to its international commitments, maintains its adherence to the primary provisions of these Protocols. We expect the same allegiance from the Armenian government,” the Ministry said.