The Turkish MFA provided an explanation to Azerbaijan with respect to Turkey having congratulated Armenian President Serzh Sargsyan on his reelection into office.

“The congratulation, which was issued to Armenian President Serzh Sargsyan in connection with his reelection as President of the Republic of Armenia, is made in accordance with our state traditions, as it is done after the issuance of the election results in other countries,” reads Turkish MFA’s response to APA News Agency of Azerbaijan. 

To note, APA had posed a query to the Turkish MFA and asked: “Does [Turkish President] Abdullah Gul’s congratulating Serzh Sargsyan, before the publicizing of the official results [of Monday’s presidential election in Armenia], correspond to the traditions of Turkish diplomacy?”  

The Turkish MFA’s aforesaid statement also noted that Turkey recognized Armenia’s independence on December 16, 1991.