Turkey, Armenia to sign landmark deal
Turkey and Armenia will sign a landmark deal to
establish diplomatic ties next month in Switzerland in a bid to end
decades of animosity, Turkish officials said Sunday.
``The foreign ministers will come together on October 10 and sign the drafted document,`` Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan told reporters, without giving details.
The signing is to take place in Zurich, a government official told AFP on condition of anonymity.
Foreign ministers Ahmet Davutoglu of Turkey and Eduard Nalbandian of Armenia will sign two protocols, the texts of which had been agreed earlier and internationally hailed as a major breakthrough, he said.
Swiss Foreign Minister Micheline Calmy-Rey, whose country acted as a mediator in reconciliation talks between the two neighbors, is also likely to attend the ceremony, he said.
Turkey and Armenia have been at odds and their shared border has been shut since 1993 due to Armenia`s occupation of Azerbaijani territory and Armenian claims of World War I-era genocide. On August 31, Ankara and Yerevan agreed to begin discussions on forging diplomatic ties and developing bilateral relations. The two governments announced they would complete domestic consultations over two protocols within six weeks. These protocols ultimately envision re-opening the Turkish-Armenian border.
A Swiss foreign ministry official said the signing ceremony ``will probably take place in Switzerland,`` though Armenian officials were not available for comment.
The protocols, however, will not take effect immediately.
Both governments will submit the documents to their respective parliaments for ratification, a process expected to take considerable time.
The signing of the protocols will precede an eagerly anticipated football game between the two countries.
The fence-mending process had gathered steam in September 2008 when Turkish President Abdullah Gul paid a landmark visit to Yerevan to watch the first leg of a World Cup qualification match between Turkey and Armenia. It is unclear whether his Armenian counterpart, Serzh Sarkisian, will return the gesture when the second leg is played in the northwestern Turkish city of Bursa on October 14.
``The foreign ministers will come together on October 10 and sign the drafted document,`` Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan told reporters, without giving details.
The signing is to take place in Zurich, a government official told AFP on condition of anonymity.
Foreign ministers Ahmet Davutoglu of Turkey and Eduard Nalbandian of Armenia will sign two protocols, the texts of which had been agreed earlier and internationally hailed as a major breakthrough, he said.
Swiss Foreign Minister Micheline Calmy-Rey, whose country acted as a mediator in reconciliation talks between the two neighbors, is also likely to attend the ceremony, he said.
Turkey and Armenia have been at odds and their shared border has been shut since 1993 due to Armenia`s occupation of Azerbaijani territory and Armenian claims of World War I-era genocide. On August 31, Ankara and Yerevan agreed to begin discussions on forging diplomatic ties and developing bilateral relations. The two governments announced they would complete domestic consultations over two protocols within six weeks. These protocols ultimately envision re-opening the Turkish-Armenian border.
A Swiss foreign ministry official said the signing ceremony ``will probably take place in Switzerland,`` though Armenian officials were not available for comment.
The protocols, however, will not take effect immediately.
Both governments will submit the documents to their respective parliaments for ratification, a process expected to take considerable time.
The signing of the protocols will precede an eagerly anticipated football game between the two countries.
The fence-mending process had gathered steam in September 2008 when Turkish President Abdullah Gul paid a landmark visit to Yerevan to watch the first leg of a World Cup qualification match between Turkey and Armenia. It is unclear whether his Armenian counterpart, Serzh Sarkisian, will return the gesture when the second leg is played in the northwestern Turkish city of Bursa on October 14.
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