Turkey summons Canadian ambassador over Armenian ‘genocide’ bill

22.04.2004

ANKARA (AFP) – Turkey summoned Canada’s ambassador to express its
disappointment over the Canadian parliament’s recognition as genocide
the killings of Armenians under Ottoman rule during World War I, a
Turkish diplomatic source said.

Ambassador Michael Leir was called in to the foreign ministry for a
meeting with deputy undersecretary Nabi Sensoy “to discuss the
developments in the Canadian parliament,” the diplomat told AFP on
condition of anonymity.

An angry Ankara protested strongly after the Canadian parliament on
Wednesday adopted a resolution recognizing that Turkey committed
genocide against Armenians in 1915, in a move which went against the
wishes of Canadian Foreign Minister Bill Graham.

“We strongly condemn the fact that the federal Canadian parliament, in
spite of all our approaches, has served only the interests of marginal
groups,” read a statement from the foreign ministry earlier Thursday.

“Canadian politicians will bear the responsibility of all the negative
consequences that this resolution will bring,” it added.

The Canadian resolution was said to have mainly symbolic value, with no
effect on the country’s policy towards Turkey.

The massacres of Armenians during World War I is one of the most
controversial episodes in Turkish history.

Armenians say up to 1.5 million of their kinsmen were massacred in
orchestrated killings nine decades ago.

Turkey categorically rejects claims of genocide and says that 300,000
Armenians and thousands of Turks were killed in what was civil strife
during World War I when the Armenians raised up against their Ottoman
rulers.