Clinton hailed steps taken by Turkey and Armenia to normalize their ties as she met here with the foreign ministers of both countries.
US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton on Monday hailed steps taken by Turkey and Armenia to normalize their ties as she met here with the foreign ministers of both countries.
Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu and Clinton spoke to reporters prior to their meeting in New York.
Clinton pointed out the importance of relations between Turkey and the United States and said, “the foreign minister and I speak on a range of issues that are important, including energy and Turkey’s EU accession process and the normalization efforts with Armenia and the situation in Afghanistan, Pakistan, Iran, the Middle East.”
“And I very much appreciate the strong commitment that the Turkish government has made to the Armenia normalization process, and I also am very grateful for the strong relationship that the United States and Turkey have had, which continues today,” Clinton said.
Davutoglu, on his part, said that relations between the two countries have set a model as U.S. President Barack Obama described earlier.
Davutoglu said the dept and scope of relations covered several areas of cooperation from Middle East to Central Asia, from EU to energy security.
“So, therefore we need to talk and consult,” he said.
Earlier, Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan said Turkey and Armenia will sign a landmark deal to establish diplomatic ties on Oct. 10 in Zurich, Switzerland.
’The foreign ministers will come together on October 10 and sign the drafted document,’ Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan told reporters, without giving details.
The deal also foresees the reopening of the Turkish-Armenian border.
In a previous move, Turkish President Abdullah Gul said that diplomacy was being carried out to convince Armenian President Serzh Sargsian to a national match between Turkey and Armenia to be played in Turkey in October.
On August 31, Turkey and Armenia agreed to start their internal political consultations on the establishment of diplomatic ties and development of bilateral relations.
Turkey and Armenia agreed to launch internal political consultations over two protocols, which had been agreed on under Swiss mediation. The consultations were to be completed within six weeks which would be followed by ratification at Turkish and Armenian parliaments.
The Turkish and Armenian soccer teams will meet in an Oct. 14 World Cup qualifier.
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