Azernews.Az

Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan is apparently indignant over his Russian counterpart, Vladimir Putin`s, recent unequivocal statement that opposed linking settlement of the Armenia-Azerbaijan Upper (Nagorno) Garabagh conflict and Turkey-Armenia reconciliation.
``No matter how much they try to resolve these issues separately, behind the scenes, they are inter-related,`` Erdogan said.
In remarks quoted by the local media, Erdogan recalled that the Turkish-Armenian border had been shut nearly two decades ago due to the Garabagh conflict.
``If the Armenia-Azerbaijan conflict is settled and the occupation of Garabagh is ended, the Turkey-Armenia issue will be easily resolved. If Armenia has good intentions, it should start with withdrawing from the regions it occupies. Then a positive shift is possible,`` the Turkish premier said.
Turkey and Armenia do not have diplomatic relations and the border between the two countries has been closed since 1993. Armenia`s occupation of the territories of Azerbaijan, Turkey`s ally, and Yerevan`s claims about the 1915 genocide, have been obstacles to normal relations between the two countries.
Erdogan noted that Turkey has taken steps toward normalizing its relations with Armenia.
``Having taken some risks, we have authorized transport plane flights to Armenia and opened the Yerevan-Istanbul flights. We have opened air communications, but opening the overland border is a different issue.``
According to Erdogan, these matters were openly discussed with Russian President Dmitry Medvedev and Prime Minister Putin during his two-day visit to Moscow early last week.
``Russia is the country that has the strongest clout over Armenia within the OSCE Minsk Group. But Russia`s different position on the issue is complicating achieving results,`` Erdogan said.
Armenia has had territorial claims against Azerbaijan, its South Caucasus neighbor, since the early 1990s. The country`s armed forces have been occupying over 20 percent of Azerbaijan`s internationally-recognized territory, defying international law. The United States, Russia and France are mediating efforts aiming to reach a settlement through the Minsk Group.
Putin made the statement at a news conference after hosting his Turkish counterpart, Erdogan, last Wednesday.
``If we take into account that the Upper Garabagh and Turkey-Armenia problems are complicated issues, as they are, I don`t think it would be right to combine them into the same package,`` he said.
The Russian prime minister said solving either problem separately is already a daunting task. ``If we put everything together, the prospect of solving the issue will automatically become very distant.``Putin added that linking the Garabagh settlement with Ankara-Yerevan normalization would be unsuitable ``from the tactical and strategic viewpoints.``
Putin`s remarks are Russia`s first statement made at a top level that sought to substantiate the unacceptability of linking the two processes. Earlier, a number of senior officials, particularly those representing Western countries including the U.S., stated that these issues should be addressed in parallel. In other words, while avoiding directly linking the two processes, key policy makers made it clear they were trying to simultaneously achieve settlement to the Turkish-Armenian and Garabagh conflicts. Putin, however, was outspoken, as he often is, publicly dismissing Erdogan`s hopes, without diplomatic restraint, and leaving the Turkish premier no room for maneuvering. Moreover, Putin`s statement came in the backdrop of public activities undertaken by Russian President Dmitry Medvedev allegedly aiming to speed Garabagh settlement, which, at first glance, seemed to be in line with the formula of ``parallel`` conflict resolution.
Also, it does not appear accidental that the Turkish media close to the ruling party immediately responded to Putin`s utterances by publishing stories suggesting that ``there is still hope`` and that President Medvedev will have the final say.
The Azerbaijani, Armenian and Russian presidents are due to hold a trilateral summit in Russia in late January, a senior Turkish diplomat, speaking on condition of anonymity, told Turkey`s Today`s Zaman newspaper.
The source said that if a joint declaration is reached at the meeting, this would advance Ankara`s efforts aimed at normalizing the situation in the region.
``Any joint declaration, either verbally or in written form, to be released after the meeting in Russia and which clearly shows that the Armenian and Azerbaijani sides have full consent over the updated version of the Madrid Principles, will mark a milestone. It will give a freer hand to Turkey for maintaining faster progress through ongoing efforts for normalization in the South Caucasus,`` the diplomat said.
The Madrid document contains the proposals put forward by the OSCE Minsk Group co-chairs on the basic principles of a settlement. The document was presented to the Armenian and Azerbaijani representatives at the OSCE summit in Madrid in November 2007.

Statement upsets pundits
The Russian prime minister`s controversial statement has upset Azerbaijani political commentators.
Analyst Fikrat Sadykhov believes Putin`s statement is tantamount to ``Azerbaijan`s defeat``. According to Sadykhov, in 2009 there was hope that Russia would exert pressure on Armenia over Garabagh conflict settlement for the sake of acquiring Azerbaijani gas. However, Putin`s statement indicates that this is not the case, and it has now become clear that Azerbaijan has failed ``to sweeten Russia with the gas factor.``
``I no longer believe the Garabagh conflict will be resolved in peace,`` said Sadykhov.
Zardusht Alizada, another Azerbaijani analyst, said Russia, the U.S. and the European Union have all stated they deem Garabagh settlement and Turkey-Armenia relations as separate issues. ``This being said, a question arises how long Turkey will be able to withstand pressure,`` Alizada said, suggesting that Ankara will face challenges in keeping the promises it made to Azerbaijan, its ally, on Garabagh settlement.
Despite pressure from the West, Turkish officials have repeatedly made clear that Ankara could mend ties with Yerevan only after the Garabagh conflict has been resolved.