“Answering that question is difficult, but I have hope and faith in Mr. Pashinyan’s course. I think that the best way and the decisions will be his,” answered Aravot.am’s question, “Is the policy of the RA authorities in the field of the regulation of Armenian-Turkish relations satisfactory, and are the Armenian authorities on the right track?” the son of Roper Hattechyan – editor of the Armenian social and political daily “Marmara,” Ari Hattechyan, director of the “Marmara” publishing house.
We visited the editorial office of “Marmara” within the framework of the “Dialogue between Armenia-Turkey journalists” program organized by the Hrant Dink Foundation. Ari Hattechyan answered the question: if Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu is elected president, will there be a change in terms of policy regarding the settlement of relations between Turkey and Armenia? “I don’t think something will change if Kılıçdaroğlu is elected because some issues remain unchanged in this country. Whoever wants to come to power cannot go beyond those lines because the people, who are nationalists, will put pressure on them and will not allow that power to move differently. So, I think that these elections will be the end of Kılıçdaroğlu’s political life.”
According to our statement, the meeting of the special representatives of Armenia and Turkey, Ruben Rubinyan and Serdar Kilic, has not taken place for almost a year, so how does he see the settlement process in this format, Ari Hattechyan answered: “I think that these conversations were stopped a little because of the elections. I am sure that after a month, it will start again.” He responded to the observation: Could the installation of the Nemesis statue in Yerevan be the reason for this? “I do not think. Such things remain for a week, but then they are forgotten, and everything starts again. The Foreign Minister of Turkey, especially the one who showed the most significant opposition to the Nemesis statue, is no longer in that position; he has become a deputy. We have yet to determine who will be the new president. Everything depends on his part.
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I don’t think that Erdoğan has the same stereotypical ideas and attitude towards that statue as Çavuşoğlu.” According to the agreement, Ari Hattechyan hopes that the Armenian-Turkish border will be opened for third countries from July 1. And why is the regulation of Armenian-Turkish relations necessary? Ari Hattechyan answered: “First, we have two homelands; Turkey and Armenia. We long for our two homelands to be at peace with each other, for us to come, go, talk, and live happily in both countries freely, boldly, and easily. That’s why we prefer the settlement; we hope the two countries will forget the past and look to the future.”
Tatev HARUTYUNYAN
Istanbul
