16:04,

YEREVAN, APRIL 23, ARMENPRESS. MP Tim Loughton, Chairman of the All-Party Parliamentary Group for Armenia in the British Parliament, has prepared an Armenian Genocide recognition bill which will be submitted to the Parliament in May.

In a video message for ARMENPRESS, the British MP expressed hope that there will be considerable support for that bill in both Houses of Parliament.

“On April 24 hundreds of thousands of Armenians will lay flowers around the eternal flame in the Genocide Memorial Complex in Yerevan, which will be one of the numerous ceremonies across the world marking the commemoration of the Armenian Genocide. This year, however, the emotional feelings from the symbolism of the day are much stronger as the pain from the last year’s war in Nagorno Karabakh, in which the Turkish side played a significant role, is too fresh”, he said.

Tim Loughton regretted that he will not be able to participate in the commemoration events in Yerevan this year, but stated that he will be laying a wreath with members of the Armenian community at the Cenotaph in Whitehall in London.

“The tragic symbolism is that the invasion to Nagorno Karabakh in 2020 took place 100 years to the day since the Turks invaded the newly independent republic of Armenia against the backdrop of the Armenian Genocide”, the British lawmaker said.

Mr. Loughton reminded that on May 24, 1915 the allied governments of the Great Britain, France and Russia issued a joint declaration, describing the committed atrocities as “crimes against humanity and civilization”, which was the first time ever for that definition to be aired on such a high level. “In 1915 the issue was raised and discussed in both Houses of Parliament. In 1916, by the efforts of the two brilliant British historians and diplomats Sir James Bryce and Arnold J. Toynbee the collection of eye-witness accounts on the Armenian Genocide was published by the British government in 1916 under the title The Treatment of Armenians in the Ottoman Empire, 1915-16 (also known as “Blue Book”), which remains one of the most notable collection of documents and witnesses of the Armenian Genocide.

Despite all these and many other facts, the British government has yet to acknowledge the Armenian Genocide. I believe that it is time, at long last, for our government to recognize a century-old outrage in which 1.5 million Armenians were massacred by the Ottomans, in the first Genocide of the modern age. And we will continue to lobby for that in the Parliament of the United Kingdom”, the MP said.

He expressed confidence that “in doing so and by joining other nations, who have already recognized it, the United Kingdom will not only ensure that the 'Never Again' retains its full meaning and significance, but will also vividly demonstrate the Global Britain’s mission as a force for good in today’s world”.

“As a friend of Armenia in the British Parliament and admirer of the achievements of the vibrant Armenian community in the UK, I want to express my solidarity with Armenia and the Armenian people around the world, on this Day of Remembrance”, Tim Loughton stated.