EUROPARLIAMENT: GENOCIDE RECOGNITION SHOULD BE PRECONDITION FOR TURKEY EU ACCESSION
PanARMENIAN.Net
05.09.2006 18:20 GMT+04:00
/PanARMENIAN.Net/ The European Parliament Committee on Foreign Affairs
(AFET) voted late last evening on the Eurlings report on "Turkey’s
progress towards accession" and its 343 amendments. This mostly
critical report of Turkey was adopted by 53 votes, with 6 against and 8
abstentions, reports the European Armenian Federation. With regard to
the question of the Armenian Genocide which was constantly discussed
during the debates, a majority of MEPs from the main political
groups (EPP, PSE, ALDE, GUE) adopted two similar amendments which
reiterate its call on Turkey to acknowledge the Armenian Genocide as
a precondition for its accession. In addition, the AFET "strongly
condemns the racist and xenophobic ‘Talaat Pasha committee’ for
gravely infringing European principles, and the demonstrations in
Lyon and Berlin, aimed to deny the Armenian Genocide". It calls on
Turkey to abolish this committee and end its activities. The European
Armenian Federation informs that the AFET also adopted a compromise
amendment disputed by many MEPs, which expresses a whole series of
obscure proposals such as the opening of the Turkish archives and
reconciliation between Armenia and Turkey. The AFET committee also
invites Turkey "to establish, without preconditions, good neighborly
relations with Armenia and to end the economic blockade and to open
the land border in order to fulfill the priorities of the Accession
Partnership and the obligations defined within the Negotiating
Framework".