Turkish and Armenian leaders meet at hotel after "football diplomacy"

(14 Oct 2009) SHOTLIST
1. Convoy carrying Armenian President Serge Sarkisian arrives at hotel
2. Sarkisian exits car, is met by Turkish President Abdullah Gul, the two leaders shake hands and walk into hotel
3. Cutaway of media
4. Sarkisian (left) and Gul in meeting
5. Close of Gul
STORYLINE
Long time foes Turkey and Armenia geared up for a football game on Wednesday - an event that had little significance in the world of sports, but packed a punch in the arena of international politics.
Armenian President Serge Sarkisian arrived in Turkey to attend the World Cup qualifier after a dinner hosted by Turkish President Abdullah Gul in Bursa, a former Ottoman imperial capital.
Gul attended an initial game in Armenia in a goodwill gesture last year, kicking off a round of "football diplomacy" that led to the signing last weekend of an agreement to establish diplomatic ties and open their border within two months.
The agreement needs to be approved by the parliaments of both countries.
The deepest dispute is over history and has yet to be resolved: Armenia and many historians allege that Ottoman Turks committed genocide against Armenians early in the last century, a charge that Turkey denies.
The countries have agreed to set up a commission to study the issue, though they are unlikely to give much ground on their positions.
Police intensified security ahead of Wednesday night's match for fear of protests from Turkish nationalists who oppose reconciliation with the
country's eastern neighbour.
Both teams have already been knocked out of the World Cup qualifying, so neither can deliver a killer blow to the other's athletic hopes.
Turkey won the first game against Armenia 2-0 in Yerevan in September 2008.
Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan has warned against "provocations that might come from people who desire to abuse the process
between Turkey and Armenia."
The agreement has strong support in the two countries' parliaments but faces stiff opposition from nationalists.
Turkey has said it would send the agreement to parliament next week.
It was signed only after US diplomats helped to resolve a last-minute hitch.
A day after the deal was signed on Saturday, Erdogan repeated a demand that Armenia withdraw from the disputed enclave of Nagorno-Karabakh.
Armenia controls the enclave in Azerbaijan, which is inhabited mainly by ethnic Armenians.
Turkey, in a show of solidarity with ally Azerbaijan, sealed its border with Armenia in response to the country's invasion of Nagorno-Karabakh
in 1993.
Azerbaijan, a regional oil and gas power, has criticised the Turkish-Armenian deal, saying it aggravated the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict.
A group of Azeri lawmakers were to meet Erdogan on Wednesday to express their concerns.
Meanwhile Turkish and Azerbaijani flag stickers were pasted on dustbins, electricity poles and billboards surrounding the stadium in Bursa.
Street peddlers sold Turkish and Azerbaijani flags.
Mahmut Ozgener, head of Turkey's Football Association, quoted FIFA - world football's Zurich-based governing body - as saying on Wednesday that Turkish and Armenian flags could be flown inside the stadium during the match, but that Turkish authorities should not allow Azeri flags.
The Turkish-Armenian deal also faces opposition from groups in the powerful Armenian diaspora, which insist that Turkey accept that the killing
of up to 1.5 (m) million Armenians during the final days of the Ottoman Empire amounted to genocide.
Turkey says the number is inflated and that many died on both sides during a chaotic period.
Commissioner Olli Rehn welcomed the accord.

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