Journal of Turkish Weekly, Turkey
Dec 18 2004

Chirac Send Signs for Elections: Turkey will need to recognize
Armenian Claims

French President Jacques Chirac claims Turkey will need to recognize
Armenian claims during entry talks

By Jan SOYKOK

French President Jacques Chirac continues to insist if Turkey wants
to become a member of the European Union, it should accept Armenian
claims.

Chirac told reporters “The French people will have the last word”.
According to Chirac negotiations with Turkey will take about 10-15
years.

Many French have grave misgivings about Turkey joining, fearing an
influx of cheap labor to France, already stung by 10 percent
unemployment. Many here also question Turkey’s human rights record
and its people’s embrace of Islam.

Turkey remains extremely sensitive to the Armenian issue. Ankara says
it is strange to abuse the events happened about 100 years ago. Dr.
Nilgun GULCAn from International Strategic Research Organization, an
Ankara based Turkish think tank, said “France has to focus on the
current issues. Armenian forces occupy about 20 per cent of
Azerbaijan. Armenian Republic does not recognize Turkey’s and
Azerbaijan’s borders. Yerevan encourages the irredentist movements in
the Caucasus. However Paris cannot see all these, because the French
politicians need votes in presidential elections. There are about 1
million Azerbaijani refugees. But they are talking about Armenians
killed 100 years ago.”

Dr. Nilgun Gulcan added:

“It is true. Many Armenians killed in the 1915 events. However no one
can label these killings as ‘genocide’. Most of the Armenians were
killed by the Kurdish bandits. Many suffered from starving and
epidemic diseases. Man died in riots. On the other hand it should not
be forgeten that the armed Armenian rioters killed about 500.000
Muslims in 1915. Today more than 100.000 Armenians live in Turkey and
they strongly support Turkey’s EU entry. The Armenian Diaspora oppose
Turkey’s accession. Because if Turkey becomes a EU member they cannot
abuse the past. As a matter of fact that the one who mostly benefit
from Turkey’s EU entry will be the Armenians in Armenia. The economic
isolation of Armenia will be ended and a more developed Turkey will
help the Armenian economic deadlock.”

French-Turkish ties became strained in 2001, when French parliament’s
recognition of the Armenian killings as a genocide sparked a boycott
of French goods and an exclusion of French companies from Turkish
defense contracts. There is a strong Armenian diaspora in France and
French politicians have been under Armenian voters’ pressure.