Political analyst: Turkish president was referring to phased scheme of settling Armenian-Azerbaijani Nagorno-Karabakh conflict

How similar are Turkey and Russia’s views regarding the process of normalizing Turkish-Armenian relations and the process of a just resolution of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict?

The Armenian diaspora in the U.S. and leadership of the United States could finally involve both Turkey and Russia into their game. This game was to try to create an atmosphere of chaos in this region in which they had hoped to establish their own order. But it was so only at the initial stage of the Turkish-Armenian rapprochement. Now we see Turkey and Russia to sobber up. Moscow and Ankara share the common ground in this issue.

The changed tone of Russia’s statements on the Turkish-Armenian rapprochement and Turkey’s obvious linking  this process with a fair resolution of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict which we all witnessed during Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s recent U.S. visit testifies to this.

What are your expectations from PM Erdogan’s upcoming two-day trip to Russia?

I, like many other political scientists, keep a close eye on ongoing processes in the region and Russian-Turkish relations. It should be recalled that as a regional power, Turkey’s economy is not totally independent, but largely dependent on loans from international financial institutions.

Deepening of the Russian-Turkish economic relationship will enable Turkey to gain more economic independence. Since development of Turkish-Russian relationship benefits both those countries, situation in the entire region largely depends on relationship between these two powers. I very much hope that PM Erdogan’s the two-day official visit to Moscow will facilitate the next round of warming in the Russian-Turkish relations.

In your opinion, what did Turkish President Abdullah Gul mean in his interview with CNN Türk  when he said "something is being prepared in the kitchen” while speaking of frozen conflicts?

Most likely, President Gul was referring to a phased scheme of settling Armenian-Azerbaijani Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, at the first phase of which Armenia would free the seven occupied regions of Azerbaijan under the system 5 +2. I believe that such an option of start of a real settlement of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict is quite acceptable.

But there is one condition - that's not a final solution to the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, which can and should be resolved only within Azerbaijan’sterritorial integrity.

A. Hasanov