Rice: Turkey is a terrific ally

PanARMENIAN.Net - Turkish Foreign Minister Ali Babacan and U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice discussed Monday the conflict between Georgia and Russia on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly, Hurriyet reports.



"Turkey is a terrific ally, including in this most recent crisis," Rice said before meeting with Babacan.



"We've been in touch several times, as I remember, with this situation because Turkey is a very important power force in the Caucasus and is trying to bring about a more peaceful Caucasus," Rice was quoted by AFP as saying.



Turkey, which controls the Bosporus and Dardanelles straits, approved in August the passage of U.S. warships through the Black Sea that brought humanitarian supplies to Georgia, following the brief war.



The two also discussed the Caucasus Cooperation and Stability Platform, proposed by Turkey, during their meeting, sources told Anatolian Agency. Turkey had proposed the formation of Caucasian alliance to help the resolution of conflicts through dialogue. Turkey, Russia, Georgia, Armenia and Azerbaijan are planned to take part in this new formation.



Ankara has intensified its diplomatic efforts for the Caucasus region as well as the Middle East since the Georgia-Russia war in August.



"Babacan and Rice discussed Turkish-U.S. relations, cooperation against PKK and the recent developments in the Caucasus," Burak Ozugergin, Spokesman of the Turkish Foreign Ministry said.



The recent visit of Turkish President Abdullah Gul to Armenia also came up during Babacan's meeting with Rice, Ozugergin said.



Babacan and Rice did not discuss Turkey's candidacy for a non-permanent membership in the UN Security Council for the term 2009-2010.