Turkish MP: “Int’l community ignores Karabakh conflict” - INTERVIEW

Sevki Kulkuloglu, a member of Turkish parliament from the main opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP), attended the 23rd session of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE PA) in Baku. It was Kulkuloglu’s first visit to the Azerbaijani capital. He gave an interview to ANN’s Kamal Ali.   

- What is your assessment of the OSCE PA session in Baku? 

- The session was held at the highest possible level thanks to the efforts of the organizers, the government and parliament of Azerbaijan. I appreciate your hospitality. There were no organizational shortcomings in the OSCE PA session.  

The decisions made in Baku will play an important role in the security, independence and territorial integrity of nations. The documents adopted here will serve as a basis for important decisions to be made in the future. 

- Documents were adopted in Baku on Ukraine. What could you say about that?

- We established a Ukrainian-Russian group which will also include MPs from other countries. In total, there are 20 people in the group. All of them are members of the OSCE PA. Two of them are from Turkey and one is from Azerbaijan – Azay Quliyev. This group is to support Ukraine’s independence and territorial integrity and prevent other countries from interfering in Ukraine’s domestic affairs. We keep the door open for any dialogue to achieve peace in Ukraine.

- Some members of the OSCE PA expressed concern about the fate of Crimean Tatars.  

- The security of Crimean Tatars and Mosul Turks are important to us. We have to make sure that Crimean Tatars are not expelled from their own land once again. They need security guarantees in Crimea and representation in the regional government now and in the future. We are ready for any discussions on this. 

- The Ukrainian crisis reminded Europeans of what has been forgotten in the past 20 years – the principle of the OSCE Helsinki Final Act on territorial integrity of countries. Will the Baku session help resolve the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict?

- Of course, the decisions made in Baku will have a positive impact on the Karabakh peace process. We actively discussed the Karabakh issue in Dubrovnik, Croatia, two years ago. The Turkish delegation supported Azerbaijan’s interests. But as you know, the issues of Cyprus and Karabakh are not included on the agenda of international meetings. I hope we will see more international support on these issues in the future.

Bakudaily.az