Epress.am News from Armenia
US Assistant Secretary of State for European and Eurasian Affairs Philip Gordon said on Wednesday that there was no other country in Europe than Turkey with which the United States had that much open and ongoing dialogue, Anadolu Ajansi reports.
Speaking at the German Marshall Fund, Gordon said Turkey and the United States had many common interests and policies although they had some differences of opinion on some issues. The assistant secretary said he did not agree with claims that Turkey turned its back to the West.
Gordon said Turkey was interested in the Middle East for a long time, and Turkey had always stood close to the United States and the West.
Gordon said Turkey and the United States were thinking similarly on preventing Iran from acquiring nuclear weapons, however they had differences of opinion on whether or not Iran had fulfilled required criteria regarding this matter.
The assistant secretary enumerated Turkey’s relations with Armenia as another different perspective between Turkey and the United States, and said his country was supporting the normalization process between the two countries.
Gordon said normalization would be beneficial to both countries and the region, which was also an idea supported by the Turkish government.