HISTORIANS CANNOT PROVIDE A POLITICAL ASSESSMENT, SAYS TURKOLOGIST

Tert
Sept 21 2009
Armenia

"I think that even if the Armenian Genocide issue must be discussed in
the Armenian-Turkish sub-commission of historians, then the discussions
must be directed not to recognizing and characterizing the 1915
Armenian Genocide, but to the consequences of Turkey’s denial and of
the Armenian Genocide’s international recognition. If Turkey wishes
to enjoy Armenia’s trust, then it must acknowledge the Genocide. It’s
obvious that without recognizing that fact, it will not be worthy of
Armenia’s trust," Turkologist Hakob Chakrian stated in his interview
to Tert.am.

The press recently circulated information on those individuals who
will be included in the commission of historians. It is important
to note that on the list of possible names published by the paper is
Hakob Chakrian’s name. The Turkologist told us it was the first time
he heard about his inclusion in the commission and added that in the
mentioned intergovernmental commission, historians have nothing to do.

"Historians may investigate and come to conclusions, but they cannot
give political assessments, since the recognition of the Armenian
Genocide is a political issue, and thus, the discussions held within
the commission must not be directed toward questioning the fact of
the Genocide. It is a fact, and it has already been recognized by
22 countries, in some cases at the parliamentary level," said the
Turkologist.

As for the talks on concessions, Chakrian noticed that Armenia’s
president and foreign minister have continuously stressed Armenia’s
position on the Genocide issue, and accordingly, the fact of Armenian
Genocide is unquestionable for Armenia.