Ankara supports the normalization of relations between Azerbaijan and Armenia, Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu said, Turkish Dünya Bülleteni online newspaper reported. Turkey is ready to take all steps for the normalization of these relations, the Turkish foreign minister said, the newspaper reported. Ankara attaches special importance to the normalization of Turkish-Armenian relations, but it is possible only after the liberation of the occupied territories of Azerbaijan, according to the Turkish foreign minister.
Davutoglu is participating in the Black Sea Economic Cooperation Council being hosted in Yerevan.
The conflict between the two South Caucasus countries began in 1988 when Armenia made territorial claims against Azerbaijan. Armenian armed forces have occupied 20 per cent of Azerbaijan since 1992, including the Nagorno-Karabakh region and seven surrounding districts.
Azerbaijan and Armenia signed a ceasefire agreement in 1994. The co-chairs of the OSCE Minsk Group, Russia, France and the U.S. are currently holding peace negotiations.
Armenia has not yet implemented the U.N. Security Council’s four resolutions on the liberation of the Nagorno-Karabakh and the surrounding regions. /Trend/
