YEREVAN, 16 FEBRUARY, ARMENPRESS. The time had come for Armenia to withdraw the Turkey-Armenia Protocols from the National Assembly of the Republic of Armenia since Turkey, with its actions and denial, proved that it’s not ready for normalization of Armenian-Turkish relations. This is what Director of the Oriental Studies Institute of the National Academy of Sciences of the Republic of Armenia, Turkologist Ruben Safrastyan said. “The time had come, and the Turkish authorities’ position on Armenian-Turkish relations and their denial ahead of the Centennial of the Armenian Genocide played a huge role,” Ruben Safrastyan said in an interview with “Armenpress”, adding that the withdrawal was very influential and that Armenia is on the right track. Safrastyan stressed the fact that the international community can’t have different views because it had already set the Turkey-Armenia Protocols aside, based on calculations.

 On February 16, President of the Republic of Armenia Serzh Sargsyan sent a letter  to Speaker of the National Assembly of the Republic of Armenia Galust Sahakyan informing him about his decision on withdrawing the Armenia-Turkey Protocols from the National Assembly of the Republic of Armenia. The letter particularly runs as follows:

 “Dear Mr. Sahakyan,

 We have clearly imagined all the possible options of the future developments while beginning the process of regulation of the Armenia-Turkey relations without preconditions. We were ready for both the comprehensive regulation of the ties via ratification of the protocols and the possibility of their failure, as we had nothing to hid and it would become clear for the international community whose fault it actually was that the last closed border of Europe was not opened and the chance was missed.

 It has been six years since the signing of the Armenia-Turkey protocols. During this entire period Armenia has shown a consistent standpoint in the issue of realization of the protocols.

 Notwithstanding, one should mention the lack of political will of the Turkish authorities, distortions of the protocols’ letter and spirit, and continuously putting forward preconditions. The policy of denialism and editing history has simultaneously received a new impetus on the threshold of the 100th anniversary of the Armenian Genocide.

 I have stated for a number of times that time is not endless. I reflected on this issue in September 2014 and at the UN General Assembly. That’s a pity that this call of Armenia fell on deaf ears of Turkey’s leadership.

  Hence, I have made a decision on withdrawing the “Protocol on the Establishment of Diplomatic Relations between the Republic of Armenia and the Republic of Turkey” and “Protocol on Development of Relations between the Republic of Armenia and the Republic of Turkey” from the National Assembly of the Republic of Armenia” signed in Zurich on October 10, 2009.”