Agence France Presse — English
October 13, 2006 Friday

Greece congratulates Turkish Nobel laureate, extends invitation

Greece on Friday congratulated Turkish novelist Orhan Pamuk for
winning this year’s Nobel prize for literature, praising his
"excellent" work and extending an invitation for a visit.

"The award of this top-ranking award constitutes recognition of your
excellent literary work," Greek Foreign Minister Dora Bakoyannis said
in a letter to the Turkish writer.

"It would be a great joy and an honour to (see you) visit Greece
soon," she added.

A political dissident whose statements have repeatedly riled the
Turkish establismhment, Pamuk faced prosecution in his home country
last year after telling a Swiss newspaper that 30,000 Kurds and one
million Armenians had been killed during World War I under the
Ottoman Turks.

The Greek parliament in 1996 approved a resolution condemning the
Armenian massacre as genocide.

Turkey counters that 300,000 Armenians, and at least as many Turks,
died in civil strife when Armenians took up arms for independence and
sided with invading Russian troops as the Ottoman Empire fell apart
during World War I.