Turkish Forum

Category: Regions

  • Gul Hosts Karzai and Zardari for a Trilateral Summit in Istanbul

    Gul Hosts Karzai and Zardari for a Trilateral Summit in Istanbul

    Gul Hosts Karzai and Zardari for a Trilateral Summit in Istanbul

    Publication: Eurasia Daily Monitor Volume: 5 Issue: 232
    December 5, 2008 02:19 PM Age: 3 hrs
    Category: Eurasia Daily Monitor, Turkey, Foreign Policy
    By: Saban Kardas

    Turkey is hosting another major international gathering, marking its growing profile in regional and international diplomacy. Turkish President Abdullah Gul has brought together Afghan President Hamid Karzai and Pakistani President Asif Ali Zardari in a trilateral meeting being held in Istanbul on December 5 (www.cnnturk.com, December 5).

    This is the second such trilateral summit that Turkey has arranged. The presidents of Turkey, Afghanistan, and Pakistan met for the first time on April 29 and 30, 2007, in Ankara. At that time the Pakistani and Afghan leaders issued the so-called Ankara Declaration, which underlined their intention to take concrete steps toward regional development and the fight against terrorism. Following the meeting, the parties agreed to form a joint working group to follow up on the conclusions of the summit and maintain the trilateral process (Stratejik Analiz, June 2007; www.asam.org.tr).

    Gul extended his invitation for a new meeting to his counterparts during the UN General Assembly in September 2008, and they accepted. After deliberations over the scheduling, the three heads of state finally decided to meet in Istanbul. The main items on the summit agenda are cooperation in security and the economy. The joint working group composed of senior-level officials met the day before to discuss the specific areas set in the first trilateral meeting. Given Turkey’s experience, the parties are expected to reach an agreement to train Afghan and Pakistani officers in Turkey’s anti-drug trafficking and anti-terrorism educational centers. The joint declaration prepared by the working group will be approved by the leaders and made public. Moreover, representatives of the business sector met within the framework of the Istanbul Forum founded by the Union of Chambers and Commodity Exchanges of Turkey (TOBB) with it’s the equivalent bodies from Afghanistan and Pakistan (www.cankaya.gov.tr, December 3; www.cnnturk.com, December 5).

    The inclusion of the private sector and economic issues as a separate group reflects Turkey’s recent foreign policy philosophy that a comprehensive solution to political problems can be built on the foundations of strong economic cooperation.

    Some Turkish observers nonetheless criticize the fact that the real purpose of such a “trilateral” mechanism has never been clear, and the details of such talks have not been made public (ANKA, December 4). Several bilateral contacts undertaken as part of the wider event are significant. On the sidelines of the summit Karzai and Zardari are holding bilateral talks with each other, and each is meeting separately with Gul.

    By initiating this trilateral process, Turkey is seeking to increase trust between the two neighbors through high-level contacts, as well as build an infrastructure for cooperation (www.trt.net.tr, December 5). Turkey’s main asset is its positive bilateral relations with both neighbors and its relatively neutral position toward their bilateral problems. Turkey has traditionally considered Pakistan a sister nation and maintained close ties with Islamabad, despite the occasional changes in each country’s domestic politics. Turkey has had a similar relationship with Afghanistan. It has played an active role in international efforts to rebuild Afghanistan and has supported the central government since the U.S. invasion. Turkey has been part of the NATO-led International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) since its inception.

    Moreover, as a Muslim country integrated into Western security architecture, Turkey is in a unique position to facilitate cooperation between these countries and the Western powers. Turkey’s new role from January 2009 as a non-permanent member of the UN Security Council is likely to also augment its leverage in this area.

    Turkey’s bilateral meetings with Pakistan and Afghanistan further highlight its attempts to become involved in the current sensitive issues of South Asian diplomacy. Prime Minister Erdogan visited New Delhi in November (EDM, November 25). Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapaksa was in Turkey on December 2 as Gul’s official guest, and several bilateral agreements were signed during his stay (www.cankaya.gov.tr, December 3).

    Turkey’s activism in the region is particularly welcome to Pakistan. Pakistani sources praised the contribution of past Turkish efforts in “removing misunderstandings and enabling the two countries [Pakistan and Afghanistan] to focus on collaborative measures for bringing stability to the region.” Pakistani foreign office officials also expect the trilateral meeting to contribute to progress and prosperity in the region (Associated Press of Pakistan, December 4; www.thearynews.com, December 4).

    Islamabad is also taking advantage of Turkish mediation in other countries. The United States and Afghanistan have criticized Islamabad for failing to fight the Taliban and Al-Qaeda militants in Pakistan’s tribal areas. When U.S. missile strikes and American incursions into Pakistani territory raised tension in the region, Pakistan approached Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan to use his county’s influence among NATO members and the United States to stop these military operations (www.dunyabulteni.net, November 3).

    After the deadly terror attacks in Mumbai severed relations between India and Pakistan, Erdogan and Turkish Foreign Minister Ali Babacan engaged in extensive telephone diplomacy with Pakistani and Indian officials, contributing to worldwide efforts to ease tension between the two nuclear nations. At his Pakistani counterpart’s request, Erdogan spoke with UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-Moon, Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert, and British Prime Minister Gordon Brown, calling on them to prevent tension between India and Pakistan from escalating. An additional asset here was Turkey’s good relations with India (Zaman, December 1).

    Turkey’s role in initiating this trilateral dialogue highlights its new role as a peace-broker in regional disputes. Turkey has successfully asserted itself as a mediator in the talks between Syria and Israel and between the Palestinians and Israel. It has proposed a Caucasus Stability and Cooperation Platform and has offered its services to mediate in the Iranian nuclear issue. This new activism has earned Turkey applause. U.S. President George W. Bush recently called Gul to congratulate him for his country’s efforts in fostering cooperation between the presidents of Afghanistan and Pakistan, as well as Turkey’s constructive role in Iraq (Anadolu Ajansi, December 4).

    https://jamestown.org/program/gul-hosts-karzai-and-zardari-for-a-trilateral-summit-in-istanbul/

  • Karabakh Peace Proposals ‘Altered’

    Karabakh Peace Proposals ‘Altered’

    By Emil Danielyan

    The United States, Russia and France have made changes in their proposed basic principles of a Nagorno-Karabakh settlement in hopes of facilitating their acceptance by Armenia and Azerbaijan, Azerbaijani Foreign Minister Elmar Mammadyarov said on Friday.

    The so-called Madrid principles were formally put forward by the mediators in November 2007 and are still being discussed by the conflicting parties.

    “In order to achieve a new phase of the settlement, the foreign ministers of the countries co-chairing the OSCE’s Minsk Group have presented the parties to the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict with certain changes in the Madrid proposals,” Mammadyarov said, according to the Day.az news service. He did not specify those changes.

    The Armenian Foreign Ministry could not be immediately reached for comment on this.

    Mammadyarov spoke to journalists in Helsinki where he was attending an annual high-level meeting of the OSCE along with his Armenian counterpart, Eduard Nalbandian. The two men held talks there on Wednesday and had a brief conversation with Foreign Ministers Sergei Lavrov of Russia and Bernard Kouchner of France as well as U.S. Assistant Secretary of State Daniel Fried the next day.

    In an ensuing joint declaration, Lavrov, Kouchner and Fried urged the parties to “finalize the Basic Principles in coming months.” The mediating powers hope that the presidents of Armenia and Azerbaijan will meet again soon to iron out their remaining differences on the framework peace accord. Matthew Bryza, Fried’s deputy and the Minsk Group’s U.S. co-chair, expressed hope on Thursday that the meeting will take place “in a couple of weeks.”

    Mammadyarov said, however, that Presidents Ilham Aliev and Serzh Sarkisian will hold the next round of their face-to-face talks only “next year.” Aliev and Sarkisian pledged to intensify the search for a mutually acceptable compromise in a declaration which they signed with Russia’s President Dmitry Medvedev after talks outside Moscow on November 2.

    In a speech at the OSCE meeting on Friday, Nalbandian accused Azerbaijan of “misinterpreting” key provisions of the declaration. He pointed to Aliev’s recent remark that the declaration’s reference to a “political settlement” of the Karabakh conflict does not commit Azerbaijan to non-use of force.

    https://www.azatutyun.am/a/1598737.html

  • Principles of Azerbaijan on Nagorno Karabakh conflict

    Principles of Azerbaijan on Nagorno Karabakh conflict

     

     
     

    Helsinki. Tamara Grigoryeva-APA. Delegation of Azerbaijan attending the meeting of the OSCE Ministerial Council in Helsinki has issued written statement reflecting Azerbaijan’s Principles applicable to the peaceful settlement of the conflict in and around the
    Nagorno-Karabakh region of the Republic of Azerbaijan.

    APA correspondent in Helsinki reports that the document reads Azerbaijan is committed to solving the conflict by political means and in a constructive
    manner. But Azerbaijan will never compromise its territorial integrity and thus accept a fait-accompli based solution, which the Armenian side is trying to impose.
    The conflict can only be solved on the basis of respect for the territorial integrity and
    inviolability of the internationally-recognized borders of Azerbaijan, and peaceful coexistence of Armenian and Azerbaijani communities in the Nagorno-Karabakh region within Azerbaijan, fully and equally enjoying the benefits of democracy and prosperity.
    The ultimate objective of the settlement process is to elaborate and define the model and legal frameworks of the status of the Nagorno-Karabakh region within Azerbaijan. The process of definition of any status shall take place in normal peaceful conditions with direct, full and equal participation of the entire population of the region, namely, the Armenian and Azerbaijani communities, and in their constructive interaction with the Government of Azerbaijan exclusively in the framework of a lawful and democratic process. Attempts to define the status of the Nagorno-Karabakh region in a situation of continued occupation of the region and surrounding territories, and forced displacement of Azerbaijani population are incompatible with universal and European values and contradict the principles and ideas of peace, democracy, stability and regional cooperation. Such attempts seek to legitimize the results of ethnic cleansing and impose a fait accompli situation on Azerbaijan.
    A number of important steps have to be taken to reach a stage where the parties concerned can start negotiating a self-rule status for the Nagorno-Karabakh region within Azerbaijan:

    • The factor of military occupation must be removed from the conflict settlement context.
    Armenia has to withdraw completely from all occupied territories of Azerbaijan. Delay
    of return of the territories can complicate the already difficult settlement process.
    • IDPs should return in safety and dignity to their places of origin in the Nagorno-
    Karabakh region and adjacent territories.
    • Special programs on reconciliation and tolerance should be initiated with a view to
    foster cooperation between the two communities in the Nagorno-Karabakh region.
    • All communications in the region shall be opened for mutual use.
    • Upon release of the territories of Azerbaijan from the occupation the rehabilitation and economic development of the region shall take place.

  • Dashnaks Urge Caution In Armenia’s Ties With Turkey

    Dashnaks Urge Caution In Armenia’s Ties With Turkey

    By Emil Danielyan

    The Armenian Revolutionary Federation (Dashnaktsutyun) has urged Yerevan to exercise caution in the ongoing rapprochement with Turkey, saying that Ankara is using it to scuttle worldwide recognition of the Armenian genocide.

    The issue was on the agenda of a three-day meeting of the pan-Armenian party’s top governing body, the Bureau, that finished its work in Beirut on Monday.

    In a statement circulated on Thursday, Dashnaktsutyun said Bureau members agreed that “Turkey has still not taken any positive step” to reciprocate President Serzh Sarkisian’s diplomatic overtures. “On the contrary, there are attempts to use the existing [Turkish-Armenian] contacts for halting the genocide recognition process and making relations between the two states conditional Armenia’s relations with a third country, Azerbaijan,” it said.

    Some Dashnaktsutyun leaders warned earlier that the incoming U.S. administration will have second thoughts about its pledge to recognize the genocide if Yerevan agrees to a Turkish-Armenian academic study of the mass killings of Armenians in the Ottoman Empire which is sought by Ankara. Sarkisian has indicated that he is not against the idea in principle.

    The Dashnaktsutyun statement said that Armenia’s “supreme leadership” views genocide recognition by the international community and Turkey as a top foreign policy priority. But in a thinly veiled warning to Sarkisian, the party represented in Armenia’s government added: “On the other hand, it was stressed [during the Bureau meeting] that the immediate importance of normalizing Armenia-Turkey relations must not take precedence over the rights of generations.”

    Meanwhile, a senior U.S. official reportedly said on Thursday the two neighboring states have come close to establishing diplomatic relations after months of intensive diplomatic contacts. The Mediamax news agency quoted Deputy Assistant Secretary of States Matthew Bryza as making this assertion after a fresh meeting of the Turkish and Armenian foreign ministers held on the sidelines of a high-level OSCE meeting in Helsinki. The two ministers already met in Istanbul late last month.

    Turkey has long made the establishment of diplomatic relations and opening of its border with Armenia contingent on a resolution of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict and an end to the Armenian campaign for genocide recognition. Despite the dramatic thaw in Turkish-Armenian ties, Ankara has so far given no indication, at least in public, that it is ready to drop these preconditions.

    https://www.azatutyun.am/a/1598716.html

  • Mediators Renew Calls For Karabakh Peace

    Mediators Renew Calls For Karabakh Peace

    By Emil Danielyan and Anush Martirosian

    The United States, Russia and France urged Armenia and Azerbaijan on Thursday to build on reported progress in recent talks between their president and reach a framework agreement on Nagorno-Karabakh in the “coming months.”

    High-ranking diplomats from the three nations jointly spearheading the drawn-out peace process reaffirmed the basic principles of a Karabakh settlement that were formally submitted to the conflicting parties in Madrid last year.

    “We call on the parties to work with the Co-Chairs [of the OSCE Minsk Group] to finalize the Basic Principles in coming months, and then begin drafting a comprehensive peace settlement as outlined by those agreed principles,” Foreign Ministers Sergei Lavrov of Russia and Bernard Kouchner of France and U.S. Assistant Secretary of State Daniel Fried said in a joint declaration.

    The declaration was issued after the three men met with the Armenian and Azerbaijani foreign ministers on the sidelines of an OSCE ministerial meeting in Helsinki. A spokesman for Foreign Minister Eduard Nalbandian told RFE/RL that the meeting lasted for about 15 minutes but gave no further details.

    Nalbandian and his Azerbaijani counterpart, Elmar Mammadyarov, held much lengthier talks in the Finnish capital on Wednesday in the presence of other American, French and Russian diplomats co-chairing the Minsk Group. A statement by the Armenian Foreign Ministry said they agreed to maintain the “positive atmosphere” created by the Armenian and Azerbaijani presidents at their November 2 talks outside Moscow. In a joint statement with Russian President Dmitry Medvedev, Serzh Sarkisian and Ilham Aliev pledged to “intensify” the peace process.

    Lavrov, Kouchner and Fried likewise emphasized the “positive momentum” which they said was established by the two presidents. “The Moscow Declaration signed that same day opened a new and promising phase in our shared endeavor to expand peace in the South Caucasus,” they said.

    The Helsinki statement called on the conflicting parties to bolster the ceasefire regime along the Line of Contact east of Karabakh and the Armenian-Azerbaijani frontier by pulling back snipers from their frontline positions. “We reiterate our firm view that there is no military solution to the conflict and call on the parties to recommit to a peaceful resolution,” it said.

    The declaration said nothing about the next meeting of Aliev and Sarkisian which the mediators say could prove decisive for the signing of an Armenian-Azerbaijani peace accord. Matthew Bryza, Washington’s chief Karabakh negotiator, said last month the holding of yet another Armenian-Azerbaijani summit hinges on the outcome of the Helsinki talks.

    Speaking to an RFE/RL correspondent in Helsinki on Thursday, Bryza expressed hope that Aliev and Sarkisian will meet again “in a couple of weeks” and insisted that the peace process is “moving forward.” “We need to see the basic principles finalized, and we believe they can be soon,” he said. “And we also want to see serious confidence-building measures and finally make sure everybody realizes there is only a peaceful settlement to this conflict. You cannot solve this conflict through a military way.”

    In Yerevan, meanwhile, a former military leader of Karabakh, Samvel Babayan, predicted that the Armenian-Azerbaijani dispute will remain unresolved in the next five years. He also criticized the Armenian government’s Karabakh policy.

    “Even though our foe hasn’t accepted any compromise variants, we are saying that are ready to compromise,” Babayan told journalists. “Nobody knows what are giving up and why.”

    The once influential general also accused Yerevan of helping to effectively drive the Karabakh Armenians out of the negotiating process. “Yerevan should not have become a negotiating party,” he said. “Stepanakert should have.”

    Arkady Ter-Tadevosian, another retired army general who played a major part in the 1991-1994 war with Azerbaijan, was also skeptical about chances of Karabakh peace. He claimed that oil-rich Azerbaijan is making “intensive preparations for hostilities.”

    (Armenian Foreign Ministry photo: Lavrov reads out the declaration to journalists.)

    https://www.azatutyun.am/a/1598714.html

  • General Rashid Dostum is in Turkey

    General Rashid Dostum is in Turkey

    Ankara – APA. Turkish Foreign Ministry confirmed that leader of Afghanistan’s Uzbek community, General Rashid Dostum is in Turkey, APA reports quoting Turkish media. Spokesman for Turkish Foreign Ministry Burak Ozugergin told journalists the reports that Dostum was in Turkey were true. Asked whether General had been illegally sent into exile by afghan government, the spokesman said no criminal case had been launched on Dostum in Afghanistan and he was not in house arrest in Turkey. Ozugergin said Dostum was together with his family living in Turkey.
    “General Dostum is the leader of Turkic community in Afghanistan. It is normal for him to hold meetings in Turkey,” he said.
    Enver Sedat, representative of the political party led by Rashid Dostum told Anadolu Agency that General had left for Ankara at the invitation of Turkish Foreign Ministry to celebrate Gurban holiday together with his family and would return after the holiday.