NOT ‘ARMENIANS LIVING ILLEGALLY,’ BUT RATHER, ‘GUESTS’: KAAN SOYAK

Tert.am
21:15 * 22.03.10

It would be better to use the term not "illegal residents" but "guests"
when referring to Armenians working in Turkey, said Turkish-Armenian
Business Development Council co-chair Kaan Soyak in an interview with
Turkish news agency Anadolu Ajansi, referring to the now infamous
statement by Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoðan.

"Armenians who have come to our country are not hiding anywhere,
their place of residence is known. They are working here as guests and
are assisting their relatives in Armenia … They are our guests,"
said Soyak, adding that Erdoðan’s words about deporting Armenians
living in Turkey, regardless of them being said with good intentions,
were misunderstood in other countries.

"Our phones haven’t stopped ringing off the hook, after those
statements. We try to explain that they were misunderstood," said
Soyak.

Referring to the adoption of the US congressional and Swedish
parliamentary resolutions recognizing the Armenian Genocide, Soyak said
that such bills complicate the Turkey-Armenia rapprochement process.

"We must realize that the most important [thing] for politicians in the
United States and in European countries is not Turkey, but rather their
constituents. We must resolve our problems ourselves, and not give
others the opportunity to make various comments that way," said Soyak.