"INTERNATIONAL" SCIENCE CONFERENCE ON ARMENIAN-TURKISH RELATIONS IN ERZERUM
By H. Chaqrian
AZG Armenian Daily
28/06/2007
On June 25, when the attention of the Turkish mass media was driven
to the interview of the Armenian Foreign Minister Vardan Oskanian
in Istanbul, at the "Ataturk" University, Erzerum, was going on an
international scientific conference dedicated to the Armenian-Turkish
relations, organized in the frameworks of celebrations of the
University’s 50-th anniversary.
Although the conference was called internationals, only Azeris took
part in it besides Turks. As Turkish statements consider Turkey and
Azerbaijan a single nation divided in two states, "international"
qualification of the conference seems somehow inconsistent.
The participants of the conference were mainly former ambassadors,
retired army generals, Azerbaijani diplomats and members of the Milli
Meclis, parliament of Azerbaijan. To the conference was also invited
retired general Sener Eruygur, at present the leader of the biggest
Kemalist organization. For good or for ill, he was unable to find
spare time to take part in the conference.
The competence of the rapporteurs on the conference is also dubitable,
as their activity was by no means related to science. As the Turkish
press relates, one of the most remarkable rapporteurs on the conference
was ex-ambassador Omer Engin Lumert, now director of the Armenian
Studies Institute of the Eurasian Strategic Research Center, Ankara.
Lumert drove the attention of the conference participants to the
fact that 17 of 19 states, which have recognized and condemned the
Armenian Genocide, have done it within the past 15 years. He stressed
that Turkey shall never accept the "allegations" of the Armenian
Genocide and open the border with Armenia until the conflict fro
Nagorno-Karabakh is settled.
Then he added that it is vain to think that Turkey will be able
to resolve the Armenian question in the nearest future. "We should
admit that in the coming years we shall be facing a very serious and
difficult struggle," he said.
Another ex-ambassador Bilal Simsir stated that Turkey has eliminated
the dreams of Armenian Districts and Kurdistan already on the Lausanne
Conference. He reminded of the 44 ASALA assaults on representatives
on Turkey in Europe, in result of which 39 Turkish diplomats were
killed. "The Armenians, trusting the Western states, roused a rebellion
and started a massacre, in the same way as PKK does at present. We
were just protecting our homeland," he declared.
Timsal, daughter of the renowned Kyazim Karabekir, represented
on eth conference the photo-archive of her father. "My father
was founding orphanages in order to care for the childreon of the
Armenians. Torturing people and desecrating the dead is rather in
the fashion of Armenians," she stated. "No matter what they allege,
a Turkish soldier can never do such things. Being just and fair in the
Armenian case, we have been unable to prove our position with facts.
Yet, we shall never give up".
Former general of the Turkish army Halit Edip Baser augmented
the folowing to Timsal Karabekir’s words, "Present problems in
the Armenian-Turkish relations are caused by foreign intervention
and are used as means of pressure upon Turkey. Whatever we may call
‘Syndrome of Sevre’, a number of neighbor states, Armenia among them,
is still planning to divide Turkey".
Consul of Azerbaijan in Igdir, Nuru Guluyev, speaking of the "Armenian
occupation of Nagorno-Karabakh", expressed a rather remarkable point
of view that Azerbaijan lost the war not to the Armenians but rather
the Russian armed forces.
Turkish scientist of Azerbaijani origin Aygun Attar was the one
to finish the rapports. In his final speech he declared that the
defamation of the Turkish National Flag, impugnment of the basic
values of the Turkish statehood, thrusts against Kemal Ataturk run
contrary to the terms of the agreement if Lausanne.
"The Lausanne conference put an end to the Armenian question. If
there are ten thousand people who can shout ‘We are all Hrants and
all Armenians’ on the funeral of Hrant Dink, then all our society
needs serious mental treatment," he said.
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress
