Political expert: Turkey is not interested in Artsakh, but in energy resources of Azerbaijan
ArmInfo.In the context of relations with Armenia, I can say with all certainty that in reality, Turkey is not interested in Artsakh, but about the energy resources of Azerbaijan and the preservation of its influence on Baku. A similar opinion was expressed by ArmInfo scientist of the Institute of Oriental Studies of the Russian Academy of Sciences, political scientist Alexander Skakov.
On October 10, 2009 in Zurich Armenian and Turkish Foreign Ministers signed the "Protocol on the Establishment of Diplomatic Relations" and the "Protocol on the Development of Bilateral Relations." The documents should be ratified by the parliaments of the two countries, however, on April 22, 2010, Armenian President Serzh Sargsyan, having signed the decree on suspension of ratification of the protocols, actually froze this process.
"Moreover, from the regional powers neighboring to Artsakh, the real interest is shown not so much by Turkey as Iran, as regards the unrecognized republic, I find that in the issue of establishing relations with Armenia, in addition to Turkey's desire or unwillingness, there is also a principally categorical position of Azerbaijan, and Baku periodically reinforces its "against" opportunities and levers at its disposal, including tariff and energy, "the political scientist said.
Skakov, in particular, does not consider possible the progress in the establishment of Armenian-Turkish relations right now, given the attempts to improve the communication between Turkey and Azerbaijan through the commissioning of the Baku-Tbilisi-Akhalkalaki-Kars railway.
At the same time, the political scientist considers the return of Armenia and Turkey to the issue of normalization of relations quite probable. According to him, the problem of establishing relations between Yerevan and Ankara will remain relevant, the whole issue in terms of the appearance of the necessary geopolitical changes for this.
On December 13, Armenian Foreign Minister Edward Nalbandian announced Armenia's readiness to "meet the spring of 2018 without the Armenian-Turkish protocols," explaining this by the groundlessness of the preconditions put forward by Ankara, contradicting the essence of the protocols. On December 14, Mevlut Cavusoglu, Turkish Foreign Minister, announced Ankara's commitment to the Armenian-Turkish protocols, describing the statements of the Armenian counterpart as "not reflecting reality and aimed at misleading the international community."