Suat KINIKLIOGLU, AK Party Deputy Chairman of External Affairs and Spokesman of the Foreign Affairs Committee in the Turkish Parliament took part in the Turkish-Azeri relations workshop organised by the SETA foundation in Istanbul Ceylan Intercontinental Hotel from the 25th to the 27th June.

At the workshop where many bureaucrats, academics and experts from Turkey and Azerbaijan were present, issues as the new development in Caucasia, Turkish-Azeri relations, the normalisation process concerning Armenia and the opening of the borders were discussed.

KINIKLIOGLU chaired the session called “The Role of Turkey and Azerbaijan in Caucasia’s Security”. He pointed at the political and economic relations between Turkey and Azerbaijan as well as the cooperation in the fields of energy and security which were contributing to stability in the region.

While talking about the changing balances in Caucasia after the Russian-Georgian conflict KINIKLIOGLU emphasised Turkey’s initiative for the foundation of the Caucasian Stability and Cooperation Platform.
He further explained that his government was pursuing a “zero problem with neighbours” – policy aiming to create a peaceful neighbourhood and that the negotiations with Armenia should be seen in this context. According to KINIKLIOGLU Turkey’s initiatives in Caucasia should be evaluated in this context and should be supported. He added:

“In our foreign policy since 2002 we have been aiming to deepen our political, economic and cultural relations with our neighbours. And as part of this policy we try to overcome problems with Armenia. In this context we started our normalisation initiative which is run parallel to the Karabað peace process, in accordance with the consultations between Turkey, Armenia and Azerbaijan.”