Erdogan Says Turkish Consulate in Shushi will be ‘Message to Armenia’
The presidents of Turkey and Azerbaijan vowed on Tuesday to resolve what they called the “Zangezur issue” swiftly, referring to a scheme advanced by Baku to have a land “corridor” through Armenia connecting to Nakhichevan.
President Recep Tayyip Erdogan of Turkey made his first official visit abroad since his inauguration last week to Baku where he met his Azerbaijani counterpart, Ilham Aliyev, who said that the opening of the so-called “Zangezur Corridor” was inevitable.
“The sooner it open, the better it will be,” Aliyev said in remarks after meeting with Erdogan.
“We will continue our efforts in this direction either way. Opening of this corridor will open up new opportunities for all the countries and have a positive impact on the regional cooperation,” Aliyev added.
“A speedy resolution of the Zangezur corridor issue will provide us with two important opportunities. Turkey’s connection with Nakhchivan will be stronger thanks to the steps to be taken in the area of road and railway communication. These relations will enable the strengthening of relations between Turkey and Azerbaijan,” Erdogan said.
The two leaders also hailed a declaration they signed two years ago in Artsakh occupied Shushi.
That declaration, which also has a military cooperation component, is seen as a document that binds Turkey and Azerbaijan closer together.
“With this agreement, Turkey and Azerbaijan officially became allies. The Shusa declaration became the official declaration of cooperation. Shusa put an end to the Second Karabakh War. I would like to thank Turkey, our brother, once again,” Aliyev said on Tuesday.
Erdogan also announce that Turkey was ready to open a consulate in occupied Shushi.
“We are ready to open our consulate whenever you want,” Turkey’s state-run Anadolu news agency quoted Erdogan as telling Aliyev and other officials at the start of bilateral talks.
“If we can open a consulate in Shusha, this would be a message to the world and especially to Armenia,” he said.
