U.S. Assistant Secretary of State for Europe and Eurasian Affairs Philip Gordon touched upon several issues, including banning Kurdish candidates to participate in Turkey’s elections, freedom of press in Turkey and Armenia-Turkey relations at a press conference.

Gordon stressed that they often discuss normalization of Armenia-Turkey relations with the Turkish side and attach great significance to the issue, Hurriyet newspaper reports.

He stressed that U.S. supports efforts to normalize relations between Armenia and Turkey. He noted that U.S. has expressed concern that the efforts have recently slowed down, as further normalization of relations and establishment of friendly relations are in the interest of two countries. For this reason, U.S. continues to assist the direct dialogue and normalization of relations between the two states. The diplomat emphasized that they include the issue on the agenda when they meet with their partners from the two countries.