[Congressional Record Volume 141, Number 189 (Wednesday, November 29, 1995)]
[Senate]
[Pages S17791-S17792]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




           PRESIDENTS OF ARMENIA AND TURKEY MEET IN NEW YORK

 Mr. SIMON. Mr. President, I receive the Armenian Mirror-
Spectator regularly, a weekly publication circulated primarily in the 
United States.
  There are two items of interest in the October 28 issue. And the 
headings on the two items tell much of the story. One is ``Presidents 
of Armenia and Turkey Meet in New York,'' and the other is ``Armenia 
Suggests Normalization of Ties With Turkey.''
  The animosities of decades and, sometimes, centuries have to be 
diminished in our world. One of those that hurts both Armenia and 
Turkey is the historic difficulties between these two peoples.
  I urge both countries to continue to move along this path toward 
reconciliation.
  And I ask that the two articles be printed in the Record.
  The articles follow:

          [From the Armenian Mirror-Spectator, Oct. 28, 1995]

           Presidents of Armenia and Turkey Meet in New York

                         (By Florence Avakian)

       United Nations, NY.--On Monday, October 23, a private 
     meeting took place between Turkish President Suleyman Demirel 
     and Armenian President Levon Der Petrossian and their aides 
     at the Turkish Mission to the United Nations in New York. The 
     meeting at the Turkish UN headquarters, which is across the 
     street from the United Nations, underscored the importance 
     that Armenia puts on improved relations with Turkey.
       Just before the Demirel-Der Petrossian meeting, the Turkish 
     President had met privately with Azerbaijani President Geidar 


[[Page S 17792]]
     Aliyev, also at the Turkish Mission to the United Nations. Following 
     the Demirel-Aliyev meeting, the two leaders came out for a 
     photo opportunity with the more than 60 Turkish and Azeri 
     media representatives. This correspondent, who was the only 
     Armenian journalist present, asked the Turkish President:
       FA: Mr. Demirel, do you have plans to have a trilateral 
     meeting with Presidents Der Petrossian and Aliyev?
       SD: No, that will not happen. We are having bilateral 
     meetings with each other. At this time, there is no need to 
     have a summit. Armenia and Azerbaijan don't have a common 
     ground or agreement in order to have a three-way summit.
       When the President of Armenia arrived for his meeting with 
     the Turkish leader, the Demirel-Aliyev meeting was still in 
     progress. He waited on another floor of the Turkish Mission 
     until the Azeri President left. Following the more than half 
     hour meeting between the Armenian and Turkish heads of state, 
     the two also came out for a photo op with the press.
       Speaking in Armenian with an English interpreter, President 
     Der Petrossian commented, ``We are using all the 
     opportunities to achieve peace. During our meeting today, the 
     issue of settlement of the Nagorno Karabagh conflict was 
     discussed as well as the issues connected with bilateral 
     relations between Armenia and Turkey. I think that the common 
     understanding is to allow the resumption of military 
     activities in Nagorno Karabagh.
       ``At the same time it is necessary for all parties to 
     express good will and to find constructive compromise and 
     solutions to the conflict. There are details that are to be 
     settled and discussed during the negotiating process. And 
     it's not only Lachin, but there are tens of issues in which 
     the parties' opinions differ from each other. Tomorrow, the 
     same issues will be discussed with Mr. Aliyev.''
       This last statement was in reference to a private meeting 
     between the Armenian and Azeri Presidents which was scheduled 
     to take place on Tuesday morning, October 24, at 9:30 am, at 
     the United Nations headquarters.
       Following the two bilateral meetings, the Turkish President 
     held a press conference with only the Turkish press, intended 
     for public consumption in Turkey. The Turkish press 
     representative summarized the information for this 
     correspondent after the briefing.
       Demirel had reportedly said, without elaborating, that 
     after the dismemberment of the Soviet Union, the importance 
     of Turkey had increased. Concerning the Caucasus, he said 
     that it was Turkey's second foreign policy priority, after 
     the war in the former Yugoslavia, and that the Karabagh 
     conflict hurts not only Armenia and Azerbaijan, but also 
     Turkey and Georgia. His statement reportedly was that when 
     one neighbor is hurt, all are hurt. The Caucasus conflict 
     cannot be resolved by force, he said, and that peace will 
     open new opportunities.
       The Turkish press representative continued the Turkish 
     President's comments which included the statement that 
     Turkey does not have designs against its neighbors, and 
     that Armenia and Azerbaijan will reach peace through the 
     Minsk Group. Demirel reportedly stated that he wants ``1.4 
     million Azeris to return to their homes.''
       In answer to a question by this correspondent three weeks 
     ago, Former Turkish Foreign Minister, Erdal Inonu, at a press 
     conference at the United Nations, used the figure of one 
     million Azeri refugees. (It is interesting to note, as I 
     reported at that time, that the International Red Cross puts 
     the figure of refugees resulting from the Caucasus conflict 
     at 1.1 million, 350,000 of which are Armenian refugees from 
     Baku, Sumgait and Karabagh.)
       The Turkish President also mentioned that he had cancelled 
     his meeting with President Clinton in Washington because of 
     the government crisis in Turkey. However, he said that 
     President Clinton, at the Presidents' dinner at the United 
     Nations, told him that he is supporting Turkey. To this, 
     Demirel thanked Clinton for his support on the oil and terror 
     issues. The United States has supported Turkey on the Kurdish 
     question. One of the most vocal protest groups outside the 
     United Nations were the Kurds asking for freedom and self-
     determination.
       The Turkish crisis which brought down the Ciller government 
     resulted in the Turkish President returning to Turkey on the 
     evening of Monday, October 23. It was widely expected that on 
     Tuesday, October 24, Demirel would appoint a new government, 
     and set a new date for elections. Reportedly, he has asked 
     Tansu Ciller to remain as Prime Minister. Reliable sources 
     also say that Hikmet Cetin, who held the post before, will 
     replace Erdal Inonu as the next foreign minister.
                                                                    ____


          [From the Armenian Mirror-Spectator, Oct. 28, 1995]

           Armenia Suggests Normalization of Ties With Turkey

       Ankara, Turkey.--The Armenian Parliament speaker this week 
     called for an end to decades of mistrust and hostilities with 
     Turkey and proposed to establish bilateral diplomatic and 
     commercial ties.
       Babken Ararktsian, who is currently in Istanbul as term 
     president of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Black Sea 
     Economic Cooperation (PABSEC), told local reporters that 
     Armenia was ready to tear down the wall between Turkey and 
     Armenia which has been there for the past 70 years.
       ``Relations should be bilateral. They should not be 
     influenced by third countries,'' he said.
       Turkey has never established diplomatic ties with Armenia 
     because of Armenia's repeated charges that Turks massacred 
     1.5 million Armenians during the First World War as well as 
     its seven-year war with Azerbaijan over the Nagorno Karabagh 
     enclave.
       Turkey had supported Azerbaijan and cut off all air and 
     overland border crossings to Armenia at the height of the war 
     in 1993.
       An air corridor between eastern Turkey and Yerevan, capital 
     of Armenia, was reopened only this year.
       Ararktsian said Armenia was ready to open its borders to 
     allow Turkish trucks carrying goods to transit to the 
     Caucasus and to the Turkic republics in Central Asia.
       ``Big perspectives exist for the future of economic ties 
     between the two countries,'' he added.

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