Anadolu Agency, Turkey
March 12 2010

Turkey worried Sweden’s resolution on Armenia "might seriously harm" ties

Ankara, 12 March: Turkish Foreign Ministry conveyed Turkey’s
uneasiness to Swedish Ambassador in Ankara Christer Asp after Sweden’s
parliament approved a resolution in support of the Armenian
allegations on the incidents of 1915.

The ministry strongly condemned the decision and asked Sweden to take
serious steps which would compensate this decision.

The ministry officials told Asp that the decision might seriously harm
the relations between Turkey and Sweden which had been developing in
the recent period.

Officials told Asp that the decision was made according to several
political interests on the eve of elections which would take place in
Sweden in September 2010.

Officials said that the mission of parliaments and politicians was not
making judgements about history, and Turkey had always been exerting
efforts for creation of a joint committee of historians to discuss the
matter.

Asp told Turkish officials that Sweden did not want any deterioration
of its relations with Turkey, and that Sweden was sorry over the
decision.

Asp also said that the resolution had been previously debated in
Foreign Affairs Committee and had not been approved, however, the
parliament made a decision contrary to the committee’s.

Asp stressed that the decision of the parliament was not binding, it
was only a recommendatory decision, adding that Swedish government
would not rely on this decision.

The Swedish parliament on Thursday adopted 131 to 130 the resolution
just days after a US House panel passed a similar bill, raising
concerns that it could jeopardize a rapprochement process between
Turkey and Armenia as the two had signed protocols to normalize
relations and open their border.

Turkey recalled its ambassador in Stockholm Zergun Koruturk to Ankara
for consultations. Koruturk is expected to arrive in Turkey on Friday.