Azadliq, Azerbaijan
February 24, 2008

Gul’s congratulation generates discontent of historians

Views expressed in the letter are inappropriate

Turkish President Abdullah Gul has congratulated Serzh Sargsyan on
his election as Armenian president

[Turkish President] Abdullah Gul’s congratulatory letter [to Armenian
president-elect] said: "I hope your new position will permit the
creation of the necessary environment for normalizing relations
between the Turkish and Armenian peoples, who have proven over
centuries they can live together in peace and concord. I sincerely
wish that our concerted efforts will contribute to regional peace and
prosperity and create an atmosphere based on stability, mutual
confidence and cooperation. Taking advantage of the opportunity, I
want to convey my best wishes for your health and happiness as well
as for the peace and welfare of the Armenian people."

We asked the deputy chairman of the PFAP [People’s Front of
Azerbaijan Party], Ibrahim Valiyev, to comment on Abdullah Gul’s
letter. He said that he did not approve of Abdullah Gul’s views full
of respect: "The Turkish president’s view about the peaceful
coexistence of Turks and Armenians can be justified because actually
during the Ottoman Empire, Armenians were highly respected as a loyal
nation. Almost all conditions were created for Armenians. At the same
time, Armenians were resettled to the Caucasus as well as Azerbaijan
with the help of Russia where they were also created all conditions
there.

"However, as time passed, Armenians’ treacherous intentions surfaced
and they have never made a secret of their intention to seize Turkish
lands. Armenians have always stabbed Turkey in the back in its
difficult days. Their attitudes towards Turks emerged in difficult
days of the fraternal country. Abdullah Gul should not have lost
sight of historic facts. The Turkish president did not take into
consideration that it is impossible to peacefully coexist with
Armenians. Apparently, he invited Armenians to rapprochement at the
international level."

The deputy chairman of the Citizen and Development Party, Aflatun
Quliyev, does not consider this congratulatory letter relevant given
the systematic and worldwide anti-Turkish propaganda of Armenians:
"True, I would not like to comment on views of the Turkish president.
Nevertheless, it would be possible to wait for the final results of
the election. From this point of view, the letter made to surprise.
As for the views sounded in Gul’s congratulatory letter, people even
with insufficient knowledge of the history are suspicious of those
opinions. As a citizen, my assessment of the congratulatory letter is
that it was a step made in haste in a time when Armenians are engaged
in worldwide activities to have the so-called Armenian genocide
recognized by various states. I consider that the views expressed in
the letter were irrelevant."