Opening of Armenian border linked to Karabakh, Turkish lawmaker says

PanARMENIAN.Net - A senior Turkish lawmaker has said the opening of the border between Turkey and Armenia is part of a larger package that also includes settlement of the Nagorno Karabakh problem.



"Opening the border is not a matter started by U.S. President Barack Obama's recent visit to Turkey," Yasar Yakis, the head of Parliament's EU Harmonization Commission, told reporters on Sunday. "The issue has been on the table since 2007, and Switzerland is involved," Yakis said.



Turkish and Armenian diplomats have been holding closed-door talks to normalize ties since 2007. It is not clear what role Switzerland plays, but the talks are believed to be hosted by it. Some say Switzerland is also a mediator, but there has been no official statement detailing its involvement.



Yakis said Turkey had no problems with the people of Armenia. "There is a problem caused by the Armenian Diaspora," he said. "Mr. Obama brought up the matter during his visit to Turkey after momentum was created by the Armenian Diaspora in the United States," he said, noting there is an impression that Turkey would open the border without resolution of the Nagorno-Karabakh dispute. "Such an impression is not correct," he said, Tosday's Zaman reported.