Armenia discussing Turkish invitation for Akdamar

Friday, March 16, 2007
Turkish Daily News
By FULYA ÖZERKAN - ANKARA

Armenian official says it is too early to say Turkish move will open dialogue between Yerevan and Ankara but repeats Yerevan's willingness to establish diplomatic ties with Ankara with no precondition

Armenia has not yet made a decision over the Turkish government's invitation for the inauguration ceremony marking the renovation of 1,000-year old Akdamar church, located in eastern Turkey.

“We don't have any answer yet … and we're still discussing the Turkish invitation,” Vladimir Karapetian, acting spokesperson of the Armenian Foreign Ministry, told the Turkish Daily News in a telephone interview.

Turkey has invited Armenian officials as well as representatives of the Armenian diaspora to participate in the ceremony of the renovated church, a development that sparked questions whether Ankara's unilateral move could become a political gesture for normalization of bilateral ties between the two neighboring countries.

The Armenian official, speaking with the TDN, said it was too early to say that the Turkish move would open dialogue between Yerevan and Ankara but made clear that Yerevan was “in favor of establishing normal relations including the opening of the border without any precondition.”

But he said the Turkish side showed no signs of rapprochement with Armenia, apparently referring to Ankara's canceled plans to allow direct flights between Yerevan and eastern the Turkish province of Van for the ceremony.

The Turkish Foreign Ministry recently held a meeting with the participation of relevant authorities to discuss preparations, as well as plans to invite Armenian officials and members of the diaspora ahead of the inauguration of the church scheduled for March 29. An official suggested that Turkey open the gate or allow direct flight between Yerevan and Van just for once to help Armenian guests to cross into Turkey easily to attend the ceremony. But the idea has been shelved for the time being, sources said.

Turkey and Armenia have no diplomatic relations, and the border between the two countries has been shut since 1993. Hopes have risen for normalization of Turkish-Armenian ties when the Turkish government invited Armenian officials and representatives of the diaspora to participate in the funeral ceremony of Turkish-Armenian journalist Hrant Dink, who was shot to death in Istanbul in January. But no visible development in the name of reconciliation between the two countries has been observed since then.

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