I’m delighted that Turkey and Armenia will establish diplomatic ties on 10 October.
The countries share a land border in the energy-rich Caspian region, which is often referred to as the gateway between the West and the East.
Turkish-Armenian relations have been strained for a long time. Armenian Christians had fewer rights than the Muslim-majority Turks during the time of the Ottoman Empire. A crisis point was reached in 1915 when many hundreds of thousands of Armenian people died in a very short time. Armenian says a deliberate ‘genocide’ was carried out by Ottoman troops under the orders from the Imperial authorities, but the successor Turkish state adamantly denies there was an official policy of systematic extermination.
Nevertheless, Turkey did recognise Armenia when it declared its independence from the Soviet Union on 1991. Relationships deteriorated when Turkey sided with Azerbaijan during the 1993 Nagarno-Karabakh War. The Armenia-Turkey border has been closed to trade ever since.
I don’t for a moment believe that the historical grievances will be put to rest by this mutual recognition – indeed the move will still require ratification from the respective parliaments in Ankara and Yerevan.
Nonetheless this a very important step forward. Now Turkey and Armenia will have a formalised framework for resolving any points of contention. Also, with the movement of trade and people across the border personal linkages and trust should grow.
So well done to Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Armenian President Serzh Sargsian on this historic agreement.
Sounds positive
This is very ecouraging. Just a note on ‘many hundred thousands’ – to be more specific, it’s over 1.5 million
Why not actually say that this was a genocide, rather than pussyfooting around with “Armenia says a deliberate ‘genocide’ was carried out”?