RUSSIAN ARCHIVES REFUTE ARMENIAN "GENOCIDE" CLAIMS
Hurriyet
h/turkey/9192242.asp?gid=231&sz=63829
June 16 2008
Turkey
A document in Russia’s official archives has surfaced that shows
Armenians carried out mass killings in 1915, and is one of the
strongest pieces of evidence that reveals Yerevan’s claims of
"genocide" are nothing but a lie. (UPDATED)
Turkish academic, Mehmet Perincek, has uncovered a 65-page report while
conducting research at the Russian State Military History Archives,
Hurriyet daily reported on Monday. The report was written by Brigadier
General Leonid Bolkhovinitov and sent to the Russian headquarters in
Dec. 11, 1915.
"Armenian voluntary units had started violent slaughters against the
Muslim people with racist motives," the report was quoted as saying
by Hurriyet.
The Russian general also said in his report the information given
by the Armenians "are politically-motivated" and did not reflect
the actual situation in the region. He also named the incidents as,
"The issue defined as the Armenian question."
"We shall not believe in the death tolls that the Armenians
give. The number of missing people has been exaggerated in the memos
distributed by the Dashnak party and there is no doubt that they
are politically-motivated. Those Armenian gangs, who triggered the
slaughters, are the ones who should be blamed for those missing,"
Bolkhovinitov said in his report.
He also accused England of provoking the Armenians to prevent a
potential alliance between the Ottoman Empire and Russia. "Before that
Turks, Armenians, and Kurds used to live in peace. Even the living
conditions of Armenians were much better than Kurds’ and Turks,"
he added.
This report is likely to create a new perspective on the Armenian
claims, given the fact that Russia and the Ottomans were enemies
during the late 1910s, increasing the importance of the report.
Turkey says parliaments and other political institutions are not the
appropriate bodies to debate and pass judgment on disputed periods
of history. Past events and controversial periods of history should
be left to historians for their dispassionate study and evaluation.
However Turkey’s efforts to carry a deeper investigation have yet to
have a positive outcome. In 2005, Turkey officially proposed to the
Armenian government the establishment of a joint historical commission
composed of historians and other experts from both sides to study
together the events of 1915 and to open the archives of Turkey and
Armenia, as well as the archives of all relevant third-party countries
and share their findings publicly. Unfortunately, Armenia has not
yet responded positively to this initiative and Turkey’s proposal
remains on the table.