TURKEY DOES NOT CORRESPOND TO EU STANDARDS – ARMENIAN YOUTHS UNDERLINE IN
THEIR LETTER TO AMBASSADORS OF EU STATES

YEREVAN, December 16 (Noyan Tapan). Turkey was not and cannot be
a state-bearer of the European legacy in the political and cultural
sense or in terms of civilization. The ARF “Nicol Aghbalian” students
union and the “Mitk-Kentron” youth analytic organization state this in
a letter sent to the EU states’ ambassadors accredited in Armenia. In
the letter they express conviction that Turkey does not correspond
to the human rights and political freedoms standards of the EU.

“Denying the fact that the Ottoman Empire and the Turkish Republic
committed the Armenian genocide in 1915-1923, Turkey today
perpetrates destruction of the Armenian cultural legacy. Since
Armenia’s independence Turkey has been implementing an extremely
hostile policy with respect to Armenia by violating repeatedly the
fundamental principles of the international law,” the authors of the
letter emphasize.

The Armenian youths are concerned about the scandalous facts of the
human rights violation in Turkey, by restriction of freedom of speech
and by intolerance of etnic minorities whose rights are stipulated
by the constitution.

“In the Armenian society and among the Armenian youth the European
Union is perceived as an institution that supports the high criteria
of human rights and fundamental freedoms defence, while the start
of negotiations on Turkey’s membership in the EU with Ankara raises
doubts about this image of the European Union,” the authors of the
letter underline.

Noting that Armenia considers the European orientation to be one of the
priorities on its political supremacies agenda, the Armenian youths
express hope that the EU leaders will not yield to an inoportune
and momentary interest, to Ankara’s “insincere and vain reforms”
and will take a correct decision refusing to negotiate with Turkey on
the issue of its joining the EU until Ankara in particular recognizes
the 1915-1923 Armenian genocide. “By agrreeing silently to Turkey’s
membership, the member states assume responsibility for this heinous
crime against humanity,” the letter reads.