Should Gül go to Yerevan?

Should Gül go to Yerevan?

FATMA DİŞLİ
As President Abdullah Gül continues to consider whether to accept an invitation from his Armenian counterpart, Serzh Sarksyan, to go to Yerevan to watch a World Cup qualifying game between the national teams of the two countries, debates have intensified over the possible consequences of his Yerevan visit.

Currently, Turkey has no official relations with Armenia as it closed the border and severed ties after Armenia occupied Nagorno-Karabakh, a region of Azerbaijan, a regional and ethnic ally for Turkey. And Yerevan’s support of the Armenian diaspora’s efforts to win international recognition of Armenian genocide claims makes the already strained relations even more tense. Considering all this, Gül’s visit may be the first step in normalizing relations with Armenia and settling long-standing disputes.
Sabah’s Erdal Şafak thinks no matter what decision Gül makes over Yerevan’s invitation, it will trigger a set of dynamics. Assuming that Gül decides to go to Yerevan on Sept. 6, Şafak predicts that his decision will lead to a deep polarization among the Turkish public. “No matter what everyone says, it will lead to a great disappointment on the Azerbaijani front, which has influential supporters even within Turkey’s ruling party. This disappointment will be doubly felt in Azerbaijan and will even prompt the [President Ilhan] Aliyev administration to make strategic choices,” says Şafak. Although not much reflected in the Turkish media, Şafak says the Azerbaijani public has been busy discussing Gül’s possible Yerevan visit for the past two months. “Such strong winds are blowing in Azerbaijan that they want to cut off Turkey’s nose to spite its face. In order to soothe its anger, Azerbaijan can turn its eyes from the Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan [BTC] pipeline to Russian pipelines,” Şafak warns. Whether Gül goes to Armenia or not, Şafak says one thing is certain: “Stones have been dislodged in Turkish-Armenian relations. The 15-year-old status quo has been broken.”

Milliyet’s Taha Akyol talks about instructions Gül gave to the Foreign Ministry in which he said he would go to Yerevan if his visit is more than a touristic trip and if it will lead to a political and economic thawing of relations with Armenia. Akyol says the ministry is now discussing two issues with Yerevan: security, as there are concerns that radical Armenian groups may engage in disrespectful acts towards Turkey and the Turkish president, and Turkey’s demands during Gül’s meeting with Sarksyan. “The initial signals from Yerevan are positive. It is a strong possibility that Gül will go to Yerevan; however, this is up to whether his visit will be more than a touristic trip,” Akyol says. In his view, Gül’s possible Yerevan visit may be an important step in melting the ice between Turkey and Armenia. “I hope both Yerevan and the Armenian diaspora will come to understand the mistake of engaging in fanaticism and the need to have friendly ties with Turkey,” Akyol adds.

Hürriyet’s Fatih Çekirge thinks Gül has already made up his mind to go to Yerevan on Sept.6; however, he does not want to announce his decision at the moment because he does not want to give radical groups in Yerevan a chance to organize protests. On whether or not he should go, Çekirge says Turkey could give a lesson of peace to the world by accepting Sarksyan’s invitation. “A hand has been extended, so it should be shaken. Closing borders and harboring fears do not resolve problems,” Çekirge contends.

Today’s Zaman

02.09.2008