By Alexander Tagvoryan

Ahmet Davutoglu

YEREVAN, September 3–The settlement of the Nagorno Karabakh problem will help to establish stability in the South Caucasus, thinks the Foreign Minister of Turkey Ahmet Davutoglu.

“The settlement of the Armenian-Azerbaijani conflict is needed to turn the Caucasus into a peaceful, stable and prosperous region,” he said during his visit to the Eastern regions of Turkey.

He also said that the opening of the Turkish-Armenian and Armenian-Azerbaijani borders is also very important in this case.

During an interview with the reporters at the airport of Kars, Davutoglu was asked when is the Armenian-Turkish border going to finally open (since all the Turkish goods are still being delivered to Armenia via Georgia). Davutoglu said, “Our strategy for the Caucasus region is based on certain grounds. The Turkish government is making efforts to make this strategy work. A one-sided settlement would not be enduring. All the borders in the region should be open so to make the region grow. The opening of the Turkish-Armenian and Armenian-Azerbaijani borders will bring peace and prosperity to the region.”

“We want the relations between all the countries in the region to be resolved. Being guided with this perspective, we signed the protocols [with Armenia] last year, and although  Armenian-Turkish relations didn’t reach the desired level last year, progress was reported in the peaceful Armenian-Azeri talks on Karabakh,” said Davutoglu.

According to the news agency Chihana, Davutoglu also said that Turkey is concerned with the armed conflict that happened between Armenia and Azerbaijan lately and led to several deaths.

Yerevan Report