|
 YEREVAN
(Combined Sources)—At the initiative of the Armenian
Revolutionary Federation, 12 political parties and organizations
Tuesday issued an announcement against the Armenia-Turkey
protocols, calling for changes to ward off the inherent threats
in the document.
“The need to join forces and act together is
apparent, and this initiative is aimed at ending the process
based on the pre-determined protocols,” said ARF Supreme Council
of Armenian chairman Armen Rustamian
He explained that the parties that have
already signed the announcement were initiating a united front
to thwart efforts that will pit Armenia in unwanted and
dangerous territory.
Also signing the announcement were the
Heritage Party, founded by Armenia’s former foreign minister
Raffi Hovannisian and the Ramkavar-Azatakan party, whose Western
US chapter joined the protocol protests in the Western US.
The parties said in their statement that
Armenia and Turkey have no mutual treaty, adding that by
recognizing the existing border—effectively the 1921 Kars
Treaty—Armenia, for the first time as an independent state, will
ratify the part of the treaty that is essential to Turkey
thereby satisfying one of its key preconditions.
The parties also voiced their concern over
the planned establishment of a Turkish-Armenian
intergovernmental sub-commission to conduct an “impartial
scientific examination of historical documents and archives.”
The signatories assert that such an agreement will effectively
halt all efforts for the international recognition of the
Armenian Genocide. This has been Turkey’s longstanding
precondition to normalizing relations.
One other major concern voiced by the parties
was the evident link between normalization of Armenia-Turkey
relations to the resolution of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict,
especially the clause in the protocols that emphasizes the
principle of territorial integrity and ignores the principle
right to self-determination of nations.
“Thus, Turkey gets [Armenia] to meet another
precondition, which is demanding that Armenia and mediators
ensure developments in the Karabakh resolution process that are
suitable to it. And finally, by registering a bilateral decision
to open the border that was closed by Turkey unilaterally,
Turkey in fact shares its responsibility for keeping the border
closed until today with Armenia,” the statement said.
Rustamian called on other political forces
for add their signatures to the announcement.
“The situation is indeed very serious, and
the political groups that put their signatures to this joint
statement set the beginning of the formation of a single front
that will make it possible to prevent developments that are
undesirable and damaging for us,” Rustamian told RFE/RL.
Rustamian added that they still hope the
Armenian authorities will not sign the protocols.
“This is an issue of a pan-national
significance. This is not a matter of leadership change. This is
an issue of our future, our future generations… This unity, in
its essence, is pure and sincere. I am confident that all
national forces must come to this field,” emphasized Rustamian.
|
