Turkey “committed to peace protocols with Armenia”, Erdogan says

April 22, 2010 - 18:15 AMT

PanARMENIAN.Net - Turkey's Prime Minister said on Thursday his country is “committed to peace protocols with Armenia, despite a decision by Armenia's ruling coalition to suspend ratification of the accords by the parliament.”

“We have frequently expressed our commitment to the protocols in word and in spirit and our goal to fulfill them,” Recep Tayyip Erdogan told a news conference, Worldbulletin reported.

In their statement earlier Thursday, three parties forming the majority in Armenia's parliament accused Turkey of refusal to ratify the Protocols "without preconditions and in a reasonable timeframe."

The coalition rates as unacceptable the latest statements by Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan, who keeps linking ratification of Armenian-Turkish Protocols to resolution of the Nagorno Karabakh conflict.

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.