Author(s): Pınar ÖZDEN CANKARA, Okan ÇEREZ
Although Turks and Armenians have had the culture of living together for centuries, they started to distance themselves from each other due to the phenomenon of nationalism, and what happened during the First World War caused wounds that would not be closed between the two communities. When the Armenians became Soviet satellite, the two countries took part in different blocks during the Cold War years and did not contact each other for many years. While the international system was reshaping in the 1990s, there was an opportunity to develop relations between two countries. However, in this process, the desired momentum between the parties could not be fully achieved. The factors that prevent the development of relationships have a great effect on this. Because of the Armenians mentioning the 1915 deportations as “genocide”, politicizing this issue and the invasion of the Nagorno-Karabakh which belongs to Azerbaijan are important factors that impede the development of Turkey-Armenia relations. These issues prevented the two countries from opening their borders and establishing political and economic relations not only in the 1990s but also in the 2000s. The aim of this study is to demonstrate how Turkey-Azerbaijan relations and Turkey’s support to Azerbaijan in Nagorno-Karabakh conflict affects its relations with Armenia by taking into consideration of other factors. In the study, the statements of the bureaucrats of the three countries and the agreements and protocols made between the parties were examined. The study's conclusion was that the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict and working to improve the political relations between Turkey and Azerbaijan, affects Turkey-Armenia relations negatively.
The Journal of International Social Research received 8982 citations as per Google Scholar report
