TURKEY BOYCOTTS JOINT MILITARY TRAINING IN CANADA

Agence France Presse — English
May 10, 2006 Wednesday

Turkey has withdrawn from an upcoming military training exercise in
Canada, according Canadian officials, as a diplomatic row brews over
Canada’s characterization of massacres of Armenians under the Ottoman
Empire, as genocide.

“Turkey has advised the organizers of exercise Maple Flag on Friday
that they would not be participating in this year’s exercise,”
a spokeswoman for Canada’s defence department told AFP.

“Turkey is an important NATO ally and we hope they will participate
in future exercises,” she said.

The Globe and Mail newspaper reported Wednesday the boycott was in
protest of Canada’s view. Turkish officials in Ottawa could not be
reached for comment.

Earlier, Turkey said it temporarily recalled its ambassador in Canada
for consultations over the disagreement.

Turkey was angered when Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper
referred to the “Armenian genocide” as fact in a statement praising
commemorations of the 91st anniversary of the killings on April 24.

The foreign ministry said at the time that Harper’s words were
“appalling” and would “negatively affect” bilateral ties.

In 2002, the Canadian Senate recognised the massacres as the first
genocide of the 20th century and the House of Commons followed suit
two years later.

Armenians claim that as many as 1.5 million of their kin were
slaughtered in orchestrated killings between 1915 and 1917, as the
Ottoman Empire, modern Turkey’s predecessor, was falling apart.

Turkey categorically rejects the claims, saying 300,000 Armenians and
at least as many Turks died in civil strife when the Armenians took
up arms for independence in eastern Anatolia and sided with Russian
troops invading Ottoman soil.

Operation Maple Flag involves some 40 fighter aircraft flown by pilots
from nine countries, including France, Britain, the United States,
New Zealand and Singapore.