DOHA, Qatar (Combined Sources)-A brawl broke out between a top-ranking Turkish official and a US ambassador on Sunday during talks between US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan in the Qatari capital of Doha, the Turkish Today's Zaman Reported.
According to official's, Erdogan and Clinton had met to discuss Turkey-Armenia relations, Iran, Cyprus peace talks, the Middle East, the war on terror, economic ties, and Iraq.
The fight was reported to have broken out between the US ambassador to Qatar and an advisor to the Turkish prime minister at the end of the meeting between Clinton and Erdogan.
The altercation took place after the US envoy entered the room to remind those present to close the meeting as the time was over.
In response, Erdogan's adviser said, "It is not for you to judge the importance of our meeting, you offend our country," Zaman quoted the official as saying.
The quarrel led to physical confrontation and the two diplomats were separated, but with difficulty, the paper added.
The Meeting
Diplomatic sources said Turkey's rapprochement with Armenia and Iran's nuclear program were heavily focused on during the meeting. Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu will visit Iran on Monday. He has said he is optimistic about further diplomatic steps.
Armenia's constitutional court's decision was also discussed at the meeting. The Turkish delegation said Turkey had fulfilled its responsibilities and that the Armenian court's ruling had hampered the process.
The Turkish delegation also emphasized that Turkey considered the Armenian issue a part of the normalization process in the Caucasus and called on the Minsk Group to undertake a more active role.
The parties highlighted the importance of the continuation of the negotiation process in Cyprus.
They also agreed that cooperation in the fight against terrorism should be maintained.
Turkish State Minister Zafer Caglayan will pay an official visit to the United States in the coming weeks under an economic partnership program between the two countries.
During the meeting, Clinton said she shared Erdogan's sensitivity about the situation in Gaza.
