PanARMENIAN.Net

Armenian Genocide recognition the only way to enhance Turkey’s prestige
19.05.2007 15:07 GMT+04:00

/PanARMENIAN.Net/ `The most efficient way to enhance Turkey’s prestige
is to acknowledge the atrocities and apologize for them. This would
put an end to the mistakes of the past and Turks could meet the future
with an open heart,’ Director of the Institute of CIS Studies
Konstantin Zatulin writes in a letter addressed to Lala Ulker, an
advisor at the Turkish Embassy in Moscow.

In his latter Zatulin brings in the words of well-known Turkish writer
Ahmed Altan who used to say that the Armenian Genocide is a historical
fact and it must not be forgotten.

`I cannot agree with you that the investigation of the Armenian
Genocide issue is a task for historians only. As you know, atrocities
are assessed by lawyers and not by historians. That is why this
outrageous episode of the world history should be given a juridical
assessment first of all. Documents are more than enough. Turkey’s
policy towards Armenians at those times can be defined as genocide, as
it’s interpreted by article 2 of UN 1948 Convention On the Prevention
and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide.

According to Zatulin, Turkey’s denial of the Armenian Genocide is the
most annoying factor in the Armenian-Turkish relations and hampers
their normalization. Ankara’s stubborn desire to force Armenia to
abandon its position on the Armenian Genocide issue in exchange for
normalization of relations cements tension between the two states. I
am hopeful that common sense will prevail in Ankara and it will take
this painful but courageous and essential step that put an end to
hostility between the two peoples,’ the Russian politician writes.

Earlier, Ms. Lale Ulker accused Konstantin Zatulin of `jaundice and
distortion of history’ in response to his article titled `The bill on
genocide will keep memory of Genocide awaken.’