Turkish politics and the society is predominantly occupied with the constitutional amendment drive of the ruling Justice and Development Party, or AKP, and the latest appeal to the president of the main opposition Republican People’s Party, or CHP, to declare from now on he would favor referring to referendum three articles in the AKP’s proposal – those regarding the high courts and the closure of political parties – separate from the remaining 24 “sugar coating” articles and the provisional articles.
Yet, something is happening silently in Turkish-Armenian relations – in particular regarding the contentious protocols for improved relations between the two countries.
A report from Yerevan early in the morning came as a complete surprise for many newsmen in Ankara. As important as it is, the report from Yerevan that the Armenian parliament would complete before the end of this week the approval process of the Turkish-Armenian protocols became a secondary development as the day progressed. It became clear that, not only a senior Turkish diplomat was in the Armenian capital with a special letter from Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan to Armenian President Serge Sarkisian, but the two leaders would indeed be meeting in Washington on the sidelines of a nuclear security summit.
Developments are indeed so striking that one cannot stop but ask what else might be in the pipeline? Perhaps also on the agenda is a meeting between the Turkish prime minister and the Armenian president with American President Barrack Obama playing the host. Anyhow, both the Turkish prime minister and the Armenian president are already scheduled to have separate meetings with the American president. Why not have a trilateral meeting since the Obama administration has been the main backstage catalyst of the Turkish-Armenian rapprochement for a long time?
Such a trilateral meeting was not yet confirmed by any of the three countries. Probably, either such a meeting was not yet firmly arranged, or the three countries wanted to keep such an encounter secret for now. Because of the delay in Erdoğan’s making a decision to attend the nuclear security summit due to the government’s protest of the House Armenian resolution, even the expected Erdoğan-Obama meeting is not on the official agenda of the U.S. president. Yet, both Turkish and American officials appear confident that somehow the president and the prime minister will create an opportunity for get together during the summit.
As for now, it is not yet public what tools U.S. diplomacy used in prodding either Armenia or Turkey. The Armenian administration decided to complete the parliamentary approval process of the protocols “without making any change in them” and drop its earlier demand that the protocols should first be approved by the Turkish Parliament. The Turkish administration all of a sudden sent Foreign Ministry Undersecretary Feridun Sinirlioğlu to Yerevan as a special emissary of Erdoğan to deliver a letter to Sarkisian. Yet, it was known for some time that the Obama administration wanted the two governments to stop dragging their feet, act on the protocols and take some concrete steps towards improving relations between themselves. At one point, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton even created uproar in the Armenian diaspora with a “slip of the tongue” that the history commission to be established within the framework of the protocols would soon be established.
Normalization
With Turkish Ambassador Namık Tan - withdrawn to protest the House of Representatives Foreign Relations Committee’s approval of the “G” resolution - back in Washington and Erdoğan making a U-turn from his earlier decision not to attend the April 12-13 nuclear security summit in the U.S. capital, it is clear Turkey has received “credible assurances” from the Obama administration of a more active resolution of the possible “G” resolution in Congress.
Yet, obviously, with the April 24 anniversary of the so-called Armenian “genocide” approaching and pressure building on Obama from the Armenians to use the “G” word and Turkey warning of the serious consequences such a development might create in Turkish-American relations, the U.S. administration wants to achieve some progress on the protocols. Perhaps, the U.S. is after a move from Ankara regarding making a pledge to open the border with Armenia in the foreseeable future and a signal from Yerevan of its intention to withdraw from the occupied Azerbaijani territory – the reason of the border closure by Turkey – helping Turkey to act on the border issue.
YUSUF KANLI/Hurriyet Daily News
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