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Ahiska Turks’ Leaders to Visit Georgia

Politics Materials 8 July 2008 17:16 (UTC +04:00)

Kazakhstan, Almaty, 8 July / Trend corr R.Mashadihasanli/ Ahiska Turks' leaders will pay a visit to Tbilisi next week to discuss Georgian Government's decision to repatriate Ahiska Turks, who were exiled from their native land in Georgia to Central Asia and Kazakhstan in 1944.

"Georgian Government's decision to repatriate Ahiska Turks is not final. We will visit the country to discuss the issue," Ziyaddin Ismihanoglu, chairman of the Coordination Council of World's Ahiska Turks, President of Ahiska National Centre of Kazakhstan said to Trend .

Ahiska Turks' delegation intends to meet with Georgian President Mikheil Saakashvili.

Ismihanoglu said the decision on repatriation has a range of defects: "For instance, the term allotted to Ahiska Turks to apply for return to their native land and for restoration of their rights is too short. So, Ahiska Turks residing in ten countries will not be able to apply to Georgia by 1 January 2009," he said.

Ismihanoglu added two days before that he had met with Turkish President Abdullah Gul, who was participating in the event devoted to Astana's 10th anniversary and Kazakh President Nursultan Nazarbayev's birthday, and discussed the issue with him in details. According to Ismihanoglu, Gul said Turkish Government had always supported Ahiska Turks and he promised to exchange views on the issue with Georgian President Saakashvili.

The correspondent can be contacted at [email protected]

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