SWEDISH CONFLICT WITH TURKEY WORSENS FOLLOWING GENOCIDE CLASSIFICATION

IceNews
x.php/2010/03/18/swedish-conflict-with-turkey-wors ens-following-genocide-classification/
March 18 2010
Iceland

A widening rift is developing between the Swedish and Turkish
governments in the wake of the Swedish parliament’s decision to
recognise the 1915 mass killings of ethnic groups including Armenians
as genocide.

In Turkey, Christer Asp, the Swedish Ambassador, confirmed that
protests had continued over the weekend in several cities, which
followed the large demonstration that took place outside of the
Swedish consulate last Friday in Istanbul. Asp added that he had been
inundated with hate mail from concerned parties inside both countries,
which question the continuance of Swedish business interests in Turkey
and the Middle East.

"Some of the letters are formulated in such a way that I could not
repeat them in public. They are not threats but they’re not saying
anything nice about Sweden, if you know what I mean," Asp told
reporters. The Local has also reported that Carl Bildt, the Swedish
foreign minister, has publicly condemned the parliamentary vote.

"These kinds of decisions tend to increase tensions rather than reduce
them," he said.

Swedish Prime Minister Fredrik Reinfeldt had earlier given Recep
Tayyip Erdogan, his Turkish counterpart, an assurance that he was not
in support of the decision. Reinfeldt contacted Erdogan last Saturday
in an attempt to distance himself from the decision, which officially
recognised the mass killings by Ottoman Turks of Armenians as genocide.

Reinfeldt blamed "domestic politics" for the decision and claimed that
he was "ready to do the necessary so that this unfounded decision
does not harm bilateral relations". The Swedish parliament defied
government advice to recognise the genocide of Armenians and other
groups following the disbanding of the Ottoman Empire.