YEREVAN (RFE/RL) — Garo Paylan, a Turkish-Armenian member of the Turkish parliament, pledged on Friday, September 22, to try to “build bridges” between Turkey and Armenia, while reiterating that Ankara is unlikely to normalize relations with Yerevan anytime soon.
“I would like to open, even slightly, the door of dialogue. I know that it will be difficult, but even in the darkest of times the door of dialogue must be kept a little open,” Paylan told a news conference held at the end of his weeklong visit to Armenia.
“I can see that Armenia’s leadership is prepared for such dialogue,” he said. “When I return to Turkey, I will ask our government whether they are ready for it or not.”
Paylan arrived in Yerevan to take part in a government-organized conference that brought together some 1,800 ethnic Armenians from around the world. They discussed with Armenian government representatives Armenia’s relations with its worldwide Diaspora.
Paylan met with Prime Minister Karen Karapetyan and Foreign Minister Edward Nalbandian on the sidelines of the three-day forum that ended on Wednesday. He was received by President Serzh Sargsyan later on Friday.
Speaking at the UN General Assembly in New York on Tuesday, Sarkisian announced his intention to formally annul U.S.-brokered agreements to normalize Armenia’s relations with Turkey.
