Estranged neighbors ‘make history' on Bursa soccer field

Turkey and Armenia will make progress on "important steps together," President Abdullah Gül said at a reception he held for his counterpart, Serzh Sarksyan, following the soccer game in Bursa, which ended with the Turkish team's 2-0 win. “We don't write history, we are making history,” said Gül, standing next to Sarksyan, both smiling.

The president was referring to the rocky process of improving ties between the two countries that have not had diplomatic relations since 1993 when Turkey closed its border with Armenia in solidarity with Azerbaijan after Armenia occupied the Azerbaijani territory of Nagorno-Karabakh where there is a large Armenian population.

Gül also said the “huge iceberg” would not melt in a day. “We are trying to have it melt slowly by blowing and blowing on it again,” Gül, who had accepted Sarksyan's invitation to Yerevan on Sept. 6 of last year to watch the game between the national teams of both countries for the first leg of the World Cup qualifier, added.

On Wednesday evening, after the soccer game, Gül held a reception honoring Sarksyan at the Almira Hotel in Bursa. During the 35-minute reception, both leaders demonstrated their warmth toward each other. When Sarksyan was asked by a journalist about protests in and outside of Armenia calling on him not to go to Turkey, he replied calmly that he listened to “all views.”

Sarksyan's official Internet site did not contain information on his schedule for Wednesday even though it is usually updated daily. Diplomatic sources said this could be a tactic to assuage his country's nationalists who are against improving ties with Turkey.

On the other hand, the Azerbaijani side has been expressing concerns about the Turkish-Armenian ties, seeing them to be against Turkish-Azerbaijani relations. Diplomats often refer to the current peace processes between Turkey and Armenia and Azerbaijan and Armenia as separate but parallel tracks.

Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan noted at a press conference before leaving for Iraq on Thursday morning that Sarksyan faces “difficulties too,” both inside Armenia and outside, as the 5.7 million-strong diaspora opposes a deal with Turkey unless Ankara recognizes the mass killings of an estimated 1.5 million Armenians toward the end of World War I as genocide.

After months of furious diplomacy, the two countries took a significant step on Oct. 10 as Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoğlu and Armenian Foreign Minister Edward Nalbandian signed protocols in Zurich to improve relations. The protocols do not refer to “genocide,” but call for the establishment of a commission of historians to examine the events of the past. The protocols do not make any reference to the Nagorno-Karabakh issue either. Both countries should have the protocols ratified in their parliaments within a “reasonable time frame.”

Back in Bursa, Switzerland's Foreign Minister Micheline Calmy-Rey watched the soccer game on Wednesday evening at Bursa's Atatürk Stadium together with Davutoğlu and Nalbandian. In the 51st minute of the game Nalbandian left to have a press conference with the Armenian journalists who traveled from Armenia for the match.

Nalbandian told the journalists that the normalization process with Turkey is continuing and that he expects that the two parliaments will ratify the protocols.

Doves fly over stadium where nationalist rock stands with boos

Minutes before Gül and Sarksyan arrived, dozens of white doves were released into the stadium in a gesture of peace from the area where the passionate Bursaspor fans had gathered. Although Azerbaijani flags were not allowed into the stadium, a white dove was spotted flying over the stadium carrying a miniature Azerbaijani flag tied to its leg.

Bursaspor fans were already quite excited before the start of the game and chanted against the Armenian national team. Gül and Sarksyan entered the stadium as “Turkey, Turkey, Turkey” chants from the fan stands were rocking the stadium.

First, the national anthem of the Armenia was played. Some Bursaspor fans behind the Turkish team's stronghold did not stand up; instead they blew whistles and booed. Fans accompanied the music during Turkey's national anthem, singing the national anthem.

The Armenian national team's appearance on the field was met by the Turkish fans' boos.

The Teksas group, known for their fanatical support for Bursaspor, was given about 6,000 tickets in the 20,000-seat stadium. In addition to 2,500 policemen who were on duty outside the stadium, there were about 700 private security personnel who were working inside the stadium in stands. There were many tickets distributed to government workers and military school students well.

Turkish soccer fans unfurled Armenian flags in the stands during Wednesday's World Cup qualifying match in support of the recently improving dialogue between Turkey and Armenia.

‘Welcome to Hrant’s Homeland’

There were 300 journalists were accredited to cover the match. There were 70 from Armenia and three from Azerbaijan.

Next to the press group, there were about 90 fans -- some of them Turkish Armenians -- of the Armenian team waving the Armenian flag.

There were occasional arguments between Turkish Soccer Federation (TFF) officials and members of the Armenian press as some people from the Armenian press waved Armenian flags although the officials said the press area should stay neutral as much as possible. Some of those flag-waving members of the Armenian continued to chant “Hayastan” or “Armenia” and waved their flag; officials gave up warning them.

The waving of an Azerbaijani flag in another tribune during the game was prevented by police. It was almost at the end of the match, at the 75th minute, when an Azerbaijani journalist started to wave the Azerbaijani flag.

There were members of civil society from both Armenia and Turkey in the stands. Among them were the Young Civilians, who are known for their ironic approaches in their protests against some undemocratic practices in Turkey. At the match on Wednesday evening they had a banner that read “Welcome to Hrant's land,” in reference to the murder of Turkish-Armenian journalist Hrant Dink in İstanbul three years ago.