‘Armenian-Turkish negotiations are a topic that cannot be conveyed to people via Zoom or television’ - Zareh Sinanyan

Officially, I am interested in the progress of the Armenian-Turkish negotiations and accordingly, I am trying to inform our compatriots in the Diaspora about them. This is what Zareh Sinanyan, the Commissioner for Diaspora Affairs, stated in an interview with Newa.am at Tsitsernakaberd.

“This is a topic that cannot be conveyed to people via Zoom or television. For example, during my visit to France, I was trying to explain to people that we are trying to start a conversation with Turkey. It would be exaggerated to call that conversation a negotiation. We have the necessity to speak with our huge neighbor, which we cannot replace with another neighbor, no matter how much we would like to. I would prefer, for example, that we had France next to us instead of Turkey, but Turkey is here, and we cannot ignore that. This state poses a security risk to our country, and not speaking with them is terribly dangerous for our nation. When we are not talking, which was the case in previous years, others speak instead of us.”

Sinanyan noted that there are red lines that the Armenian people cannot cross. “Turkey has always stated that it coordinates its foreign policy with a third country, Azerbaijan. However, we are speaking with Turkey. We should not have false illusions that it will be very easy and that Turkey will suddenly become friendly towards the Armenian people. I do not think this will happen in the near future, but even under those conditions, it is necessary to talk to them,” Sinanyan said.

When asked whether the international recognition of the Genocide is a priority for the current authorities, Sinanyan stated that international recognition is an established fact, with certain exceptions. “What have we gained from the international recognition of the Genocide? When we look at the 44-day war in 2020, what additional value did the international recognition of the Genocide provide to Armenia that would not have existed if it had not been recognized? I have been actively involved in the recognition process, but I responsibly state that I have not seen the results in terms of how much the security of the Armenian people was improved by this. We need one country to recognize it, and that is Turkey. Look, the USA has finally acknowledged the fact of the Genocide; how does this reflect on our relations with the USA? The external aid that the USA offers to Armenia, to put it mildly, is not satisfactory. In the 1990s, that amount was ten times higher. We need to understand what this recognition gives to our state.”