08 April 2009
AssA-Irada

US President Barack Obama has said Washington backs efforts to improve Turkey-Armenia relations in a phone conversation with Azerbaijani leader Ilham Aliyev.

Obama called for a negotiated solution of long-standing disputes involving Azerbaijan, Armenia and Turkey, the White House said. He also emphasized that bettering of ties between Ankara and Yerevan would promote peace and well-being in the volatile region.

Baku is concerned over efforts to reconcile close ally Turkey with arch-foe Armenia. Reports have circulated that Turkey allegedly plans to open its border with Armenia, which has been closed since 1993 due to Armenia’s policy of occupation of Azerbaijani territory and its claims regarding World War I-era genocide in the Ottoman Empire.

During the conversation, the US president said his country was committed to maintaining ties with Azerbaijan, pledging to facilitate efforts to move forward resolution of its long-running conflict with Armenia over Upper (Nagorno) Garabagh. The talks come after Obama visited Turkey where he urged Turkey and Armenia to advance talks to establish diplomatic ties and open their shared border.

According to President Aliyev’s administration, among the issues discussed were ways of resolving the Garabagh problem, energy cooperation and regional security.

The two presidents had a frank conversation during which they expressed satisfaction at the successful development of Azerbaijan-US relations. Aliyev conveyed to his US counterpart Baku’s position on Turkey-Armenia relations.

"Barack Obama informed the Azerbaijani leader about steps taken by the United States concerning Turkey-Armenia relations. President Ilham Aliyev brought the Azerbaijani state's position on the issue to the US president's attention,” Aliyev's administration said in a statement.

Analysts say that Baku’s clear-cut position on Turkey’s plans to open its border with Armenia and respective statements by Turkish officials remains uncertain, although Aliyev hinted during a meeting of Azerbaijan's Security Council on Monday that Baku could retaliate against Turkish moves to reconcile with Armenia.

"We are observing ongoing changes in the region and necessary measures will be taken," the local media quoted Aliyev as saying. "Our country has never interfered in the affairs of other countries and we have no such intentions in the future. However, it is our right to pursue our policy in accordance with the situation in the region.”

Arastun Orujlu, the head of Azerbaijan's East-West Research Center, says that the public is actually insufficiently informed about certain issues. According to him, Obama’s message does not clearly indicate whether the U.S. approaches Garabagh settlement talks from the viewpoint of Azerbaijan's territorial integrity or Garabagh Armenians’ aspiration regarding self-determination.

Another political analyst, Elkhan Shahinoglu, said while commenting on Obama’s message stating support for improved Turkey-Armenia relations that, the US president, in fact, approaches the issue from the standpoint of Washington’s interests. “Improving Turkey-Armenia ties is important for Obama. On one hand, the Armenian lobby is pressing Obama, while on the other, the American president does not want to lose an ally like Turkey. After relations between the two countries improve, his attention to the Upper Garabagh conflict might increase.”

Orujlu, for his part, assessed Obama’s message as pressure on Azerbaijan. A question arises as to whether or not this pressure could alter Baku’s stance.

“In any case, there are powerful international mechanisms, and, if they are put to use, Azerbaijan may have to back down,” the analyst maintained.

Also, the expert said the local public lacks detailed information about the proposals being made to Azerbaijan regarding Garabagh settlement, however, certain resistance by Baku enables a presumption that these proposals do not reflect the country’s interests.

Azerbaijan and Armenia fought a lengthy war that ended with the signing of a cease-fire in 1994, but Armenia continues to occupy Upper Garabagh and seven other Azerbaijani districts in defiance of international law. The OSCE-brokered peace talks have been fruitless so far.