Conflicts in the South Caucasus affect the formation of an atmosphere of trust between the countries of the region, said EU Special Representative for South Caucasus Peter Semneby in an interview with Liberty Radio.
Answering the question on interconnection between the normalization of Turkish-Armenian relations and the settlement of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, taking into account Turkish leadership’s statement that ratification of the protocols and the opening of the border is impossible without serious progress in the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, Semneby replied that officially there is no connection, but nobody can ignore the fact that each of the conflict, depending on the direction of its solution, affects the confidence building amongst regional countries.
The conflict between the two South Caucasus countries began in 1988 when Armenia made territorial claims against Azerbaijan. Azerbaijan lost all of Nagorno-Karabakh except for Shusha and Khojali in December 1991. In 1992-93, Armenian armed forces occupied Shusha, Khojali and 7 districts surrounding Nagorno-Karabakh. Azerbaijan and Armenia signed a ceasefire in 1994. The co-chairs of the OSCE Minsk Group – Russia, France, and the U.S. – are currently holding the peace negotiations.
According to Semneby, the EU welcomes the progress made in the Armenian-Turkish relations, and looks forward to further deepening of this process. “I think that the sides have reached more than many could imagine. For us it is important that our partners and the EU’s immediate neighbors – Turkey and Armenia – have normal relations,” he said.
He said that signing protocols on the normalization of Armenian-Turkish relations is an internal process, and it should be discussed by the parliaments of two countries.
Semneby also said that he would not like to speculate about how would the settlement of Armenian-Turkish relations affect on the process of Turkey’s accession to the EU. “Turkey still needs to do in the way of entrance to the EU, but the normalization of Armenian-Turkish relations can have a uniquely positive impact,” he said.
According to him, if in the next two months the sides reach the ratification of the protocols, it will make very important and constructive elements in the relations of Armenia and Turkey with the EU.
Trend
