BAKU (APA)–Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu was in the Azeri capital Baku on Thursday meeting with President Ilham Aliyev and Foreign Minister Elmar Mammadyarov to reiterate his government’s intention to use accords signed with Armenia to pursue a pro-Azeri solution for the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict.
“We openly declare to Azerbaijani society that the territorial integrity of Azerbaijan is as precious to us as that of Turkey’s,” Davutoglu said Thursday in an interview with the Azeri Press Agency, adding that Turkey considers the Nagorno Karabakh Republic as an occupied territory of Azerbaijani and will continue to “struggle” to return it to Baku’s control.
Davutoglu, who was also in Baku to attend a meeting of the Black Sea Economic Cooperation Council, sought to allay concerns in Azerbaijan that Turkey’s rapprochement with Armenia would weaken Baku’s position in the Karabakh peace process. He argued instead that Turkey’s push to normalize ties with Armenia has allowed Ankara to “revive” the negotiations and “break the deadlock” between Armenia and Azerbaijan in Baku’s favor.
“We consider the occupied Azerbaijani lands our lands and will continue our struggle to release them. We think that these protocols will give an impetus to this process,” Davutoglu said, adding that Turkey will continue to use every diplomatic opportunity to push forward its agenda in the Karabakh peace process.
“At a meeting with President Obama the first question that we raised was Karabakh. The first question was Karabakh again at my recent meeting with U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton. Turkey will always raise this issue, in spite of everything,” Davutoglu said, adding that a Foreign Ministry representative will be attending the meeting of the Minsk Group in Vienna on Friday to discuss the conflict.
“The representative of our [Foreign] ministry Unal Cevikoz is attending the meeting of the Minsk Group in Vienna,” Davutoglu said, adding that
“Even if Azerbaijan does not put the Karabakh problem for discussion, Turkey will do it everywhere” he added. “This is one of our national problems. We do not discriminate between Azerbaijani and Turkish lands, Azerbaijani and Turkish flags.”
Davutoglu also referred to recent media reports about a Turkish and OSCE Minsk Group delegation that traveled to Karabakh to map out a possible corridor linking Armenia and Karabakh through the Kashatagh (Lachin) district.
“Thanks to the enthusiasm of Turkey, the presidents of Azerbaijan and Armenia have held five meetings in the last five months,” Davutoglu said, reiterating assurances that Turkey “will fight for the liberation of Azerbaijan’s lands” in the negotiations process.
Davutoglu added that during the period it’s been involved in the Karabakh process, Turkey has made greater strides in resolving the conflict than any other actor. He attributed that success to Turkey’s initiative to establish a Stability and Cooperation Platform in the Caucasus after the August 2008 war between Georgia and Russia.
“In 18 years of occupation we have done and will do everything to liberate the occupied territories of Azerbaijan,” Davutoglu said.” Both previous and the current government of Turkey will never change its policy on Karabakh, nothing will harm our unity, and will not change strategy on this matter in Turkey.”
Davutoglu was in Baku to attend a meeting of the Black Sea Economic Cooperation Organization. While in the Azeri capital he also met with President Ilham Aliyev and Foreign Minister Elmar Mammadyarov.
Describing his talks with Mammadyarov as “a meeting between two brothers,” Davutoglu said the two had a “sincere and open dialogue” about their relations and regional politics and recalled his last meetings in Azerbaijan ahead of the signing of the protocols. “President Abdullah Gul and I were in Nakhchivan a week before the protocols were signed in Zurich. We met with President Aliyev and Elmar Mammadyarov there. There could be little discords between two brothers, but we had open and sincere talks,” Davutoglu recalled, adding that Turkey sees Azerbaijan as an extension of itself.
There you go 🙁 Thank you Mr. Sarkisyan, thank you for your well thougth out deplomacy. Now we have Turkey part of Minsk Group. See what happened. I am so mad right now.
Mr. Sarksyan’s dream is being fulfilled. Now, Mr. Davutoglu’s ball is in Karabagh.
So much for NO PRECONDITIONS right?! Preconditions right in the faces of the gullible Armenians. And if you thought that Turkey will ever change?…
Davitoglu:“We consider the occupied Azerbaijani lands our lands and will continue our struggle to release them”. He considers the occupied lands Turkish lands, exactly, since they are both historically Armenian. Turkish lands and Artsakh lands in Azerbaijian … We get the point, everything Armenian is SUPPOSED to be theirs.
If the Armenian parliament does not kill these protocols, we are in for some really troublesome times….
Mr. Sarkisyan, when you chose to play soccer with Turkey, you choose to play with fire…
Oh I am with you Hey4Life… I am sooooooooo frustrated that I can’t express my anger in a constructive way if I dont’ remind myself that I am not writing to low life Turkish Foreign Minister.. Oh I just wish I can slap him every time he uttered the words “Azerbajiani’s lands.. we will not stop fighting.. it will be Azeris.. this issue will not be dropped…” What is this mean? Mr. Sarkissyan pressed time again and again that the protocols had nothing to do with preconditions… but if you ask me.. this utter disgust of a man, Davutoglu sure is using this to his advantage.
And I would not be surprised that they will get the lands.. after all.. according to them. those lands legally belong to Azerbajian.. Taxem yes irants gluxnera… including Mr. Sarkissyan for causing all this..
Very upset
Yes, the Genocide is a “history” and Artsakh is next for Turkish diplomacy, great job by Nalbandian and Sargysian, Turks won the soccer match, and diplomacy.
Apres Katia.. You hit the bull’s eye with your post.
It is absolutely frustrating.. I am furious…as how everything went down and not Turkey is jumping up and down and demanding and pressuring and stating over and over how they are the victims and nothing will change on their end…
Aghhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh… I need to slap someone in the Turkish govt.. preferrably Sarkissyan for causing all this..
Hello!
Have you training in politics forecasting?
If you know how to bake lavash, bake lavash. If you sing Armenian song to your child, sing the song. Actually, start from that.
Its good that Turkey and Azeybayjan are friends, forget this genocide and be wise. Ottomans cared for Armenians in its borders and they have never killed children and woman. They anly fought if it is a war. Armenians made genocide but it was in the past. If your father did something bad to somebody would you pay for his bad deed. What a logic. this is not logical. In the future, Turkey will be friends with the whole world including Armenia with its zero problem policy. Why cause a problem. World is becoming globolized and small.
and so on….
Hello Jack..
If i misunderstood your post, I want to apologize right up front…
However, I am sure there is logic the way you think and I am not arguing against it..
BUT, I would like to know where you found out that the Ottomans cared for Armenians other than hearing the survivors talk about few, ONLY handful Turkish individuals saved Armenians lives.. and Thank God to them.. However, where in the history did you read that Ottomans as a nation cared about the Armenians??…
In regards to paying for something your dad did… in many many situations the son or the daughter DOES pay for what his or her parents did in the past.. could be emotionally, physically or mentally.. The child 99% of the time pays for what his parents do.. so that said.. Turkey IS and WILL be responsible for paying for what their ancestors did.. one, by RECOGNIZING the fact that yes.. their ancestors systematically murdered a race INCLUDING women and children and elders..two, by RETURNING everything that belonged TO ARMENIANS, third, ADMITTING that even though they may not have caused the Genocide, their forfathers did AND they still continue the same path (not in that mass quantity but still do) by killing, or imprisoning those who stands up against this horrible crime and calls it Genocide, fourth, by SHUTTING their mouths and STOPPING their demands by using every way possible to cover up the ugly truth, fifth, being truthful for once in their many years of existance (thanks to ARmenians and other cultures for giving them the riches, the lands, the opportunity to survive) on this earth… sixth, to THANK GOD that they are still alive and no one blew their capital into bits and pieces and destroy their entire population just like they tried to do to us…
Therefore, I am sure the world is becoming globlized and small as you mentioned and we should not cause problems…. however, you forgot that we never caused the problem, we were and still are the problem to Turks and Azeris and that is why they tried and still try to eliminate us and take over our lands…..if we don’t stop THEM, they will never stop…
Thank you and God Bless
G