advertisement
Sat, May 26 2012
Armenian genocide row: Turkey's ambassador not yet returning to the US
US president Barack Obama, right, hosts a meeting with Turkish prime minister Tayyip Erdogan in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington, December 7 2009.
Turkey says its U.S. ambassador will not return to Washington until Congress clarifies its stand on a "genocide" resolution discussing mass killings of Armenians by Ottoman Turks more than 90 years ago.
Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan, who is visiting Saudi Arabia Tuesday, has said the issue could greatly harm Turkey's relations with the United States.
The dispute began after a House of Representatives committee passed a resolution declaring the death of hundreds of thousands of Armenians was an act of genocide by Ottoman Turkish forces.
Before his election, President Barack Obama said he believed the World War I - era massacre was genocide. Now, however, administration officials say the president opposes the resolution. The full House has not yet voted on the non-binding measure.
The Foreign Affairs committee vote last Thursday triggered outrage in Turkey and prompted the recall of Ambassador Namik Tan.
Secretary of State Hillary Clinton has said the Obama administration will work very hard to make sure the resolution does not come up for a vote before the full House of Representatives.
However, Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu contends the Obama administration is not doing enough to block further action on the genocide issue, considering that Turkey is a key ally of the United States. Turkish authorities also say the U.S. resolution will complicate their efforts to normalize relations with Armenia.
Armenia has praised the resolution, with Foreign Minister Eduard Nalbandian calling it an important step to help prevent future crimes against humanity.
Armenians say about 1.5 million people of Armenian descent were massacred between 1915 and 1923, in what they contend was a campaign orchestrated by the Ottoman Turkish empire. Turkey, which now has a secular Muslim democratic government, says that Armenian death toll is inflated, and that those killed were victims of civil war and unrest in which Turks also died.
Source: VOANews.com
Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan, who is visiting Saudi Arabia Tuesday, has said the issue could greatly harm Turkey's relations with the United States.
The dispute began after a House of Representatives committee passed a resolution declaring the death of hundreds of thousands of Armenians was an act of genocide by Ottoman Turkish forces.
Before his election, President Barack Obama said he believed the World War I - era massacre was genocide. Now, however, administration officials say the president opposes the resolution. The full House has not yet voted on the non-binding measure.
The Foreign Affairs committee vote last Thursday triggered outrage in Turkey and prompted the recall of Ambassador Namik Tan.
Secretary of State Hillary Clinton has said the Obama administration will work very hard to make sure the resolution does not come up for a vote before the full House of Representatives.
However, Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu contends the Obama administration is not doing enough to block further action on the genocide issue, considering that Turkey is a key ally of the United States. Turkish authorities also say the U.S. resolution will complicate their efforts to normalize relations with Armenia.
Armenia has praised the resolution, with Foreign Minister Eduard Nalbandian calling it an important step to help prevent future crimes against humanity.
Armenians say about 1.5 million people of Armenian descent were massacred between 1915 and 1923, in what they contend was a campaign orchestrated by the Ottoman Turkish empire. Turkey, which now has a secular Muslim democratic government, says that Armenian death toll is inflated, and that those killed were victims of civil war and unrest in which Turks also died.
Source: VOANews.com
-
Print
-
Send via email
- Translate to
-
Share:
Comments
To post comments, please, Login or Register.
Please read the The Sofia Echo forum comments policy.
Turkey slams Sarkozy over Armenian genocide comments
The French president, who has been on a visit to Armenia, said all great countries — including Turkey — do the honourable thing by revisiting their history. He said the French parliament could consider making genocide denial a crime in France, just like denying the Nazi Holocaust of Jews.
US holds firm on issue of 1915 massacre of Armenians by Ottoman Turks
Many experts say the resolution by the US house of representatives foreign affairs committee puts president Barack Obama in an awkward position. But many analysts also say that may be a temporary situation, because they don't expect the measure to be taken up by the full House of Representatives.
Was 1915 massacre of Armenians by Ottoman Turks genocide?
Historians agree Armenians were massacred by the Ottoman Empire - what was to become Turkey - during World War 1. But not all agree that it was genocide.
Turkish ambassador to Sweden recalled over Armenian genocide vote
The Turkish government condemned the Swedish parliament's resolution, saying it was flawed and groundless
US congressional committee approves resolution on Armenian genocide
Turkey, which rejects the genocide label, has recalled its ambassador from Washington for consultations.
Row over US congressional committee proposed resolution on Armenia genocide
Turkey warns of repercussions if resolution is approved, while US president Barack Obama and Turkish counterpart Abdullah Gül discuss ‘bilateral issues’ on eve of vote.
The once and future Emerging Europe
Snapshots of 14 Central and Eastern European countries as the dawn of 2010 found them
Praise, criticism for Turkey – Armenia deal
Welcomed by the EU and the US, the accord signed by Turkey and Armenia has no certain future in the signatory countries and has drawn sharp criticism from Azerbaijan.
Turkey, Armenia sign deal on normalising relations
Signing ceremony on October 10 2009 in Zurich was delayed by more than two hours when Armenia’s delegation protested against a statement that was to be read out by the Turkish representatives.
More in this category
Czech Republic, Romania mull shale gas moratoriums
Governments in Prague and Bucharest could soon join Sofia in instituting temporary moratoriums on shale gas exploration.
Serbia: Tadić leads as presidential elections head for second round
Coalition around ruling Democratic Party has largest share of vote in Serbia's parliamentary election, according to exit polls.
Greek voters punish major centre-right, socialist parties at polls
Centre-right New Democracy is said by exit polls to have largest share of votes, but diminished even from its 2009 defeat, while socialists Pasok – the 2009 victors – gets somewhere around 14 to 17 per cent.
Deal on OSCE role in Serbian elections welcomed
An agreement reached with the Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) will allow voters with dual citizenship in Kosovo to vote in the upcoming parliamentary and presidential elections in Serbia.
Macedonia arrests 20 suspected terrorists
Twenty radical Muslims suspected of being members of a terrorist group that has been linked to the murder of five fishermen in early April.
© 2000-2012, Sofia Echo Media Ltd.
Web Design by RIZN
Sofia Echo Media is part of the Economedia Group.
The news and information content on this website is provided by our editorial team and is copyrighted.
Any unauthorised reproduction or use of it is strictly forbidden. Reproduction of this website's content is permitted only
with prior written permission from the Editor-in-Chief, should be propertly acredited and provide an active link back to our site.
Comments posted by the website's visitors are independent of the editorial materials and do not represent the views of sofiaecho.com.
Sofia Echo Media cannot be held responsible for the statements contained in visitor comments.
The percentаge change in the shares' prices are based on the price of the last transaction of the current session compared to the
price of the last transaction of the previous session. Bulgarian Stock Exchange data is not real-time, but updated every 15 minutes,
and should not be used as a basis for decisions about buying or selling stock options.
- Economedia Group portfolio:
- In Bulgarian:
-
Business:
Капитал,
Кариери,
Пазари,
Ho Re Mag,
Регал,
Градът.bg,
Одит,
Foton.bg,
Online shop
- News: Дневник, Европа, Foreign Policy - България
- IT: IDG.BG, Computerworld, PC World, CIO, Networkworld
- Entertainment: Бакхус
-
In English:
The Sofia Echo
II
This means that:
1) Since genocide is accepted as a reality for the Armenians, it will not be possible to discuss whether the 1915 events are genocide or not in the Sub-commission on the Historical Dimension mentioned in the Second Protocol. Therefore, the question arises of what this Sub-commission’s task will be.
In response, it has been expressed that its task will include the discussion of issues like returning back of Armenian properties left behind after the Armenian relocation, giving compensation to descendants of the relocated Armenians, and preserving Armenian monuments, such [...]
Read the full comment as churches, in Turkey. Turkey is not willing to re-examine these issues which have already been resolved with the Treaty of Lausanne.
2) By putting forth that some of the Turkish lands are in fact Armenian, Armenia indirectly claims a right over these territories. In other words, again indirectly, it does not recognize the border between the two countries.
I want to remind you that the main trigger which forced USA to join WWI was the letter sent by German Foreign Minister Zimmerman to Mexico offering support to Mexico to get back the Mexican states Arizona, Texas which had just been annexed by the USA.
Germany's claim on Zudetland and Gdansk just because they were its historical lands caused burst of World War II!
The World history is a history of wars which broke up because of territorial claims of states.
While territorial claims are so important to be reasons of war, it is not possible to understand the indifference of the USA to the Armenian claims as ally. Armenia and the US have a false conviction that under such a pressure, Turkey will be forced to ratify the protocols.
Adoption of the resolutions in the House of Representatives clearly will damage the US-Turkey relations. Whether it is brought to the House Floor does not change the negative feelings of the Turks against the American politicians including the president.
This will also push Turkey-Armenia relations which have already reached a deadlock to enter into an irreversible path and will harm the normalization process.
Rejection of the protocols by Turkey can even be possible.
This situation could harm Turkey, but will also harm the US and hinder the Turkey-Armenia relations.
I
Every year prior to April 24, the Armenian lobby increases pressure upon the US President over the speech he will deliver. But the difference now compared to the previous years is that the aim of the considered resolution by the Foreign Affairs Commission is to corner Turkey into ratifying the protocols.
However, they are the Constitutional Court of the Republic of Armenia’s decisions which have brought the process to point of zero. Because:
The court stated that the protocols can not be interpreted or applied in a way that would contradict paragraph 11 [...]
Read the full comment of Armenian Declaration of Independence.
Article 11 of the Armenian Declaration of Independence of August 23, 1990 refers to Eastern Anatolia of Turkey as Western Armenia and as such beholds that this area is part of Armenia.
Since the Armenian constitution recognizes as a basis “the fundamental principles of the Armenian statehood in the Declaration of Independence of Armenia”, it likewise accepts the characterization of Eastern Anatolia as Western Armenia and this, albeit indirectly, translates into the advancement of territorial claims.
Additionally paragraph 11 also states that The Republic of Armenia stands in support of the task of achieving international recognition of the 1915 Armenian genocide in Ottoman Turkey and Western Armenia.
Armenians rebelled against the Ottoman Empire at their weakest time, during World War I. While the Turks were defending their capital Istanbul in Gallipoli against the British and French armada from April 1915 through 1916, the Armenians started wiping out Turkish villages like Van and Erzurum to help the invading Russian armies in Eastern Anatolia. Armen Garo wrote in his book "Why Armenia Should be Free", Boston, Baikar Press, 1918 that 200,000 Armenians fought on the side of the Russian Army in the Caucasus. This is more than the number of US soldiers sent to Iraq. Considering the total population [...]
Read the full comment of Armenians in the Ottoman Empire was 1.3 million it does not leave many innocent Armenians. How a total population of 1.3 million could yield 1.5 million killed is another mind boggling Armenian forgery.
Just like the US deported citizens of Japanese ethnicity during World War II, the Turks deported the Armenians away from the war zone. Mind you the Armenians had surely collaborated with the enemy, but the Japanese were only suspected of future collaboration.
Coincidentally, the Turks started to win the war, once the Armenians were deported from the war zone where they provided shelter for the 200,000 armed rebels. 95 years later, their descendants will illegally call their treason genocide and use vote hungry (if not donation hungry) politicians to pass such verdicts and expect Turks to continue feeding 100,000 illegal Armenians in their own country?
You can’t have your cake and eat it too!
Historical Truth is the Armenians fought a war against the Turks from 1878 to 1924 and lost. Any war sounds like a genocide if the dead of only one side is counted. Indeed, the UN definition of genocide excludes warring parties. If the Armenians had a case, they would try to pass a court verdict. Instead they are tapping vote hungry to gain a back door recognition.
The dead deserve respect. Turkey is trying to "save face". The past is no reflection on the present Turkish people. Do the right thing and accept the truth. A genocide did occur-and it was deliberate.
In Germany it's illegal to deny their national crimes.
In Turkey it's illegal to admit them.
This is the difference between Modern Europe's civilization, built on Christian values of repentance and inner search, and the Muslim world of black and white us and them.
Otherwise no one is immune of grave mistakes...
This comment has been removed by the moderator because it contained foul, abusive or discriminating language
The first genocide recorded in history was the Armenian genocide by the Ottomans. Modern Turkey denies what their fathers commited but the bones of the silent lay throughout eastern Turkey.
turkish government should admit truth, apologize and be done with it.
"Turkey, which now has a secular Muslim democratic government,"
How does "secular Muslim" work?
Turkey will have to get used to the truth. The truth is what should be known not the history they continue to re-write. Turkey should face the consequences and deal with it. This is needed to have open relations.
Example: nowadays, US and Germany have pretty normal relations after all that happened in WW2..