TURKEY INSISTS ON GENOCIDE STUDY OFFER
By Aza Babayan in Moscow
Radio Liberty, Czech Rep.
Nov 1 2006
Turkey renewed on Wednesday its calls for joint Turkish-Armenian
academic research of the mass killings of Armenians in the Ottoman
Empire, saying that their acceptance by Armenia is a precondition
for normalizing relations between the two nations.
Foreign Minister Abdullah Gul said Ankara insists on the idea of
setting up a commission of Turkish and Armenian historians which
was floated by Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan in a letter to
President Robert Kocharian last year.
Kocharian effectively turned down the proposal, saying that this and
other problems hampering Turkish-Armenian rapprochement should be
tackled by the two governments. Armenia and its worldwide Diaspora
believe that the 1915-1918 genocide of some 1.5 Armenians in Ottoman
Turkey is a proven fact that can not be disputed by historians.
Armenian leaders see the Turkish proposal as a ploy to scuttle greater
international recognition of the genocide.
"We wish to establish good neighborly relations with Armenia, but
there are some political problems," Gul said, speaking to RFE/RL on
the sidelines of a meeting in Moscow of foreign ministers of Black
Sea countries. "To solve them, our parliament, our prime minister
sent a letter to [the Armenian] president. But unfortunately, we
haven’t received a positive response."
"This is a great opportunity, in fact," continued Gul. "So many
countries are supporting this initiative. I hope that your leadership
will think it over again and that we will talk and solve our problems
in good faith."
The initiative has been backed by the United States and some European
Union countries. The European Parliament also effectively endorsed
it in a September resolution that at the same time reaffirmed the EU
legislature’s earlier calls for Turkish recognition of the Armenian
genocide.
Gul made no mention of another Turkish precondition for the
establishment of diplomatic relations and reopening of the border
with Armenia: a resolution of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict that
would satisfy Azerbaijan, Turkey’s closest regional ally.
The unresolved conflict seems to have been overshadowed by last
month’s approval by France’s parliament of bill making it a crime to
deny the Armenian genocide. Ankara has reacted furiously to the move
which undermines its strong denial of the genocide. In an October 17
statement, the Turkish parliament said Armenia greatly contributed
to the passage of the bill with its "hostile policies against the
rights and pride of the Turkish nation."