!âJĞ="justify">In Turkish-Armenian relations, as must be clear by now, the most used word, or concept, is “normalization.” What this essentially means is the opening of the 325-kilometer-long Turkish-Armenian border that Ankara decided to close in April 1993 in response to Armenia's ambivalence over the recognition of its common border with Turkey and Armenian aggression directed toward Azerbaijan in the Nagorno-Karabakh dispute.

  For many years, there was not much room for maneuvering left to the Armenian government pressure Turkey to open the border. However, after the European Union Council gave the candidate status to Turkey in 1999 and accession negotiations with Turkey were opened in 2005, things have started to change. Since then, calls on Ankara to unilaterally open the border have dramatically increased. The EU in particular frequently echoes our Armenian friends when referring to “the last closed border in Europe.” In a way, the Armenian government has successfully followed the Greek Cypriots' footsteps and “Europeanized” the problem. For instance, Armenian Foreign Minister Vartan Oskanian, in a speech at the European Parliament's Foreign Affairs Committee in October, reportedly described Turkey's closure of the border as “a violation of the Copenhagen criteria.” Presumably, the current situation is negatively affecting the relationship between the EU and the Caucasus.

 

Objections to pro-opening arguments 

  Many people, not only in Europe but also in the United States, who assert the urgency of Turkey opening the border, believe that, in the light of past European experiences, the most stable borders are those open to intense cross-border interactions. The opening of the border, they say, would provide interdependency and that the acculturation that would emerge would eventually help both sides to understand each other better. They further argue that it would help create an environment in which both sides can handle sensitive issues in a constructive manner that would gradually lead to an effective process of normalization.

  Those inside Turkey, on the other hand, add that the closure of the border not only hampers the country's relations with the West but also destructively complicates its EU bid. Accordingly, the opening of the border would allegedly impede the proliferation of resolutions by Western countries' national parliaments supporting the Armenian “genocide” claims.  

  I have objections to both, to those inside Turkey in particular. First and foremost, expecting Turkey's opening of the border to impede such genocide resolutions is not much more than self-deception, if not naiveté. That the closed borders hamper Turkey's relations with the West as well as complicate its much-sought EU bid is true. Apparently, however, these Turkish intellectuals who voice such concerns seem to have unfortunately forgotten that the Turkish people's sense of belonging is not only to the West. The Western orientation of Turkey is of course of great importance. But the Turkish identity comprises two other basic components, namely being Turkish and being Muslim. Turkey's commitments to the West should not devalue its commitments to either the Turkish world or the Islamic realm. As I have said in the past, I wholeheartedly support my country's EU membership, though I have some reservations that force me to be skeptical. Yet, this country should only become a member, if its “differences” are accepted as well. To put it more bluntly, I humbly do not want Turkey to become Goethe's Faust selling out his soul to Mephistopheles. Besides, only such a Turkey would contribute to the dialogue of civilizations and would strategically help the EU to become a global player.

 

Regime change in Armenia is a must

  I hear these intellectuals voicing their reservations to Turkey's commitments to Azerbaijan. I hear them asserting that Turkey's closed-door policy has failed to yield concrete results such as the resolution of the Karabakh dispute or Azerbaijan's Armenian-occupied territory. I hear them claiming that Turkish-Azeri relations are underpinning Turkey's policy options. I need to remind them, however, where the current standoff in both issues basically stems from. And it is in that regard that I will object to our Western friends' aforementioned noble assertions.

  Turkey's unilateral opening of the border would eventually lead to a situation resembling that on the tiny island of Cyprus, at present mainly characterized by Greek Cypriot leader Tassos Papadopoulos' non-conciliatory approach. No doubt, in a similar way, it would strengthen the Armenian regime's belief that there is no need for compromise for either Turkish-Armenian relations' normalization or a resolution to both the Karabakh dispute or Armenian-occupied Azeri territories. In that regard, the sole responsibility is on EU and the U.S.'s shoulders. EU circles should never forget that it is not Turkey's closed border that hampers the relationship between the EU and the Caucasus. Unfortunately, it is the current Armenian regime's unrealistic policies that lead to the Armenian people's regional isolation giving the impression of being encouraged by both the EU and the U.S. I hope that the result of the Armenian presidential elections will change that picture.

  “The price of greatness,” said Winston Churchill, “is responsibility.” As a Turk, I know what Turkey's responsibilities are and I am ready to accept their burdens. I really wonder, in turn, whether anyone from those Western circles, as well as my beloved compatriots, who consistently exert pressure on Turkey to open its borders with Armenia have ever seen the miserable living conditions of the gackins, the Azeri refugees from Armenian-occupied lands. If this is indeed a matter of ethics, especially for those in the European Parliament and the U.S. Congress, why do they not show the same sensitivity... Why do they not help the Armenian public foster conditions in which taboos such as the “occupation” or “Greater Armenia” can be discussed freely... Why do they not help the Armenian intellectuals bring that country's people to see their past in a less distorted fashion as well…

  Do you now understand why the border should remain closed? And be sure, “my Turkey” will definitely be of more help to both the EU and the West than that univocally presented by my beloved intellectual compatriots mentioned above.