U.S. AMBASSADOR IN ANKARA WAS SUMMONED TO MINISTRY OF FOREIGN AFFAIRS OF TURKEY

PanARMENIAN.Net
27.04.2009 22:46 GMT+04:00

Turkey summoned the U.S. Ambassador in Ankara, James Jeffrey, and
expressed discomfort over U.S. President Barack Obama’s statement on
the occasion of the "Armenian Remembrance Day" on April 24.

Jeffrey was summoned to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs on Saturday
and Turkey’s reaction, and views were communicated to him, said sources
who spoke on condition of anonymity, The Anatolia News Agency reports.

Obama’s statement on April 24, "Armenian Remembrance Day" stirred
wide reaction and drew severe critism from Turkey’s top officials
and politicians on the grounds that it was biased.

Turkey’s President Abdullah Gul was the first to criticize Obama. He
told reporters the following day that not only Armenians but hundreds
of thousands of Turks and Muslims had lost their lives during the
events of 1915, adding that pain and suffering of all people who lost
their lives in 1915 should be remembered.

Gul said statesmen and politicians could not pass judgement on events
in the history, adding that it was time to look to the future and
give a chance to diplomatic efforts for solution of issues between
Turkey and Armenia, and Armenia and Azarbaijan.

Gul was followed by Premier Recep Tayyip Erdogan who argued that
Obama’s statement was related with a pledge he made to Armenian
lobbies during his election campaign.

"Such a sensitive issue requiring expertise, which should in fact be
left to historians, is continuously being used as a tool for politics
and exploited by lobbies every year, and this prevents normalization of
relations between people and countries," Erdogan was quoted as saying.