WASHINGTON (RFE/RL)–The U.S. State Department said late on Monday that it will continue to press for a speedy and unconditional implementation of the Turkish-Armenian normalization agreements despite mounting tensions between Ankara and Yerevan.
“Our position in private remains our position in public, that stemming from the agreement between Turkey and Armenia late last year, it is important that both sides take steps to fulfill the commitments that they have made,” department spokesman Philip Crowley told a news briefing in Washington.
“Obviously, we understand that this involves actions where the executive branch of each country working with their respective legislatures, and we will continue our conversations with both Turkey and Armenia to encourage them to ratify the agreement that was reached late last year,” he said.
Crowley confirmed that U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu discussed the latest snags in the ratification process in a phone call late last week. Davutoglu reportedly phoned Clinton to complain about an Armenian Constitutional Court ruling which Ankara claims runs counter to the two Turkish-Armenian “protocols.”
The Armenian government insists that the court did not challenge any of the protocol provisions and on the contrary paved the way for the deal’s ratification by Armenia’s National Assembly. Some Armenian officials have also accused the Turks of using the ruling to justify their linkage between Turkish parliamentary ratification and the resolution of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict.
The State Department has also effectively dismissed the Turkish claims. Assistant Secretary of State Philip Gordon told RFE/RL shortly after Clinton’s conversation with Davutoglu that Washington views the Armenian ruling as a “positive step forward in the ratification process of the normalization protocols between Turkey and Armenia.”
The State Department reaffirmed Gordon’s remarks in a statement posted on its website later on Monday.
The U.S. has yet to publicly comment on Armenian threats to walk away from the agreements if they are not implemented by Ankara “within a reasonable timeframe.”
Why don’t you people leave Armenia alone. No protcolos U.S. you got that? NO protocols.
There has to be more discussions on Western Armenia from the State Department and president Obama. Come April, president Obama’s true colors will come out. I will make campaign contributions and vote accordingly based on his statements and use or non-use of the word Genocide.
Enough is enogh. Time to move forward and get rid of these dinasores.
Obama’s true color is GREEN, just like any other politicians that ever lived, lives and will live. This is good for Armenia, for mid-term to get some freaking money. After that we can deal with other issues, as long as they don’t bring in Karabax and we don’t bring in the Genocide into the picture. Then when they will build a new pipeline, Armenia will have more leverage on Europe, Russia, and US, lets not forget the Turks.
We Armenians don’t call the region you refer to as Karabax. For thousands of years, it was called Artsagh and for eternity, that is what it will be called. Mongolians call it Karabagh.
Another Phillipp!!!
we are not interested in these protocols,don’t US department of state get it?we will make our voices resonate coming this Nov-2010
Kiazer Souze, Obama is a puppet in the hands of dinosaurs. He will never utter the word Genocide, he is worse than Bush, because he lied to get votes and he wasn’t man enough to stay by his word. Obama is not for Armenians or Armenia. They are all dinosaurs as far as staying with the truths of nations and recognizing a Genocide when it happened. United States have not acted ethically, morally and democratically towards Armenia and for 95 years is continuing her bad trend. It’s a sheer shame but unfortunately that is the true picture.
Please stop it with the politics. McCain voted against the Genocide resolution in the 90s along with his dual citizenship, ADL and Turkish proxy pal, Lieberman. Byrd threatened to fillabuster it.
So, let me see here, looks like we have Republican, Democrat and Independant prostitutes.
So, please keep the politics out of it. I am going to punish, in the political sense, without regard to their party. It is time we get more IANs in Congress.
The reason is clear just like bright of sun, No.1. Mr President don’t get involve
to Reconize Armenin Genocide No.2 to provide more satisfaction to his Turkey.
No.3 to keep Armenia and Armenians AS A TOY IN THEIRS HANDS.
MR. PRESIDENT LEAVE ARMENIA TO GOVERN BY ARMENIANS.
WILL YOU ?
Let it keep. All the cards are in Moscow, something I used to warn and explain 2 years ago. Now all sides (US, EU, Armenia, Turkey) are losers except Russia.
it’s OK this and some more of this and that is gonna keep happening, it’s like the wind, it’s not solid or for sure or even critical, you know they are just “pechoommen”all this conversations and back and forth, this guy that guy, this country and that. more will happen, it’s wind, not being funny, but very serious, it’s easy ” vor pechen” that doesn’t change or fix anything, just pay attention, notice that it is wind. be on guard to propaganda, be alert for the two face in among us and afar, just be with the truth, we have everything we need, we just need a good negotiator, speaker, who knows how to manage people. Yeah i know it’s not easy to hear all this nonsense and be among the lies and cheats of this world, just remember your true self and spirit, yeah you know the one, it’s a few thousand years old and still going. be on the lookout for your victory, it’s coming around the unexpected turn you can’t see yet, just expect it at every turn, it’s yours, have faith it’s working out in our favor no matter how much they manipulate and try to hurt and rob us. have faith that we already have it, that’s why all this is happening and some other things are happening that we don’t know about yet. have faith, yes! we can do it!!! Turkey and Turks are gonna get nasty and do all sorts of things you know that, so expect that, that is our key. we have to stay calm and have faith in ourselves and our free and independent nation and it’s spirit. no matter how hard it gets, and when one of us gets discouraged don’t get mad at them just carry them on your shoulder they are just tired, you be there for them and carry them now so they too can be filled with the victory dance. remember who you are… our time is now and our place is here. don’t depend on the human flesh it’s weak, depend on your true self. we are here now to claim our own it’s OK we can do it!
What is most interesting about these scum bag politicians is that they were complicit in Hrant Dink’s murder. The Turks were watching Hrant Dink and making a list. A lot of people don’t know that the FBI and CIA were being paid off by the Turks to spy on US citizens. If Clinton and Obama are sincere about governmental transparency, and McCain was sincere about keeping government out of our affairs, the government should disclose which US citizens were spied on by the FBI and CIA on behalf of the Turkish government.