EAFJD CALLS ON EUROPEAN ARMENIANS TO RALLY AGAINST TURKEY’S ACCESSION TO EU

Yerkir
13.12.2007 15:25

YEREVAN (YERKIR) – The European Armenian Federation (EAFJD) calls upon
the citizens of Europe, as well as the NGOs and Armenian associations
in Europe to come en masse to Brussels to take part in a demonstration
due on December 14.

The European Armenian Federation is of the view that by altering
the essence of these negotiations from one of automatic accession to
‘accession or privileged partnership’ is a positive move. It reopens
the political debate on the key issue of whether Turkeys uniting
with the Democracies of Europe is indeed a natural progression for
the European Union itself.

"Even if today, the Europeans have not yet defined the clear content
of what would be the ‘privileged partnership’, we know however that
Turkey will try to obtain a maximum of privileges from the EU and that
it will confer it exorbitant leverages and that it will reinforce
its economic and military power," commented Hilda Tchoboian, the
chairperson of the European Armenian Federation.

The Federation recalls that the Second Convention of European Armenians
(15-16 October 2007, European Parliament) expressed in its final
declaration the Armenian position on relations between Turkey and
the EU. The forthcoming demonstration on December 14 in Brussels,
will provide the opportunity for European citizens to restate their
attachment to the moral value of Justice without which the European,
will be unable to stand.

"Whatever the final outcome, accession or privileged partnership,
the Council will have to take the responsibility to set Union ethics
at the very heart of its relationship with Turkey. We must voice our
concerns to the European leaders so that they set forth the recognition
of the Armenian Genocide among their demands," concluded Tchoboian.