Author: Nadirian Emma

TURKEY FURY OVER SWEDEN’S ‘GENOCIDE’ VOTE

The Swedish Wire
ey-fury-over-swedens-genocide-vote
March 12 2010
Sweden

ANKARA (AFP) – Turkey’s foreign ministry Friday summoned the Swedish
ambassador to protest the Swedish parliament’s recognition of the
massacres of Armenians by Ottoman Turks as genocide.

"We conveyed our unease to the Swedish side," the diplomat told AFP
on condition of anonymity after Ambassador Christer Asp met with the
ministry’s deputy undersecretary.

Asp said in televised remarks after the meeting that his government
believes history should be left to historians and vowed to maintain
"strong, friendly" ties with Turkey.

On Thursday, the Swedish parliament voted, against the government’s
advice, to recognise the "genocide of Armenians" and other ethnic
groups during the breakup of the Ottoman Empire, in a move that
sparked Turkish ire.

Ankara quickly denounced the vote, recalled its ambassador to Stockholm
and cancelled next week’s visit by Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan
to Sweden for a summit between the two countries.

"Our people and our government reject this decision based upon major
errors and without foundation," said a statement from Erdogan’s office.

In comments published in newspapers Friday, the Turkish ambassador to
Stockholm, Zergun Koruturk, lamented that the vote had delievered a
major blow to "excellent ties" which she said were advancing towards
a strategic partnership.

"It will not be easy to repair the damage," said Korutusk, who was
expected to return to Turkey Friday.

Swedish Foreign Minister Carl Bildt announced after the vote that it
was a "mistake to politicise history" and vowed that the government’s
position remains unchanged.

Sweden is among the few countries which openly support Turkey’s
troubled bid to join the European Union.

Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu was expected to meet Bildt
Friday or Saturday on the sidelines of an informal European gathering
in Finland, a diplomatic source said.

The Swedish vote came a week after a key US Congressional approved
a similar resolution, prompting Ankara to recall its ambassador.

Armenians say up to 1.5 million of their kin were killed in
a systematic campaign of extermination during World War I as the
Ottoman Empire — Turkey’s predecessor — fell apart.

Turkey categorically rejects the genocide label and says the number
of those killed in what was civil strife during wartime is grossly
inflated.

SWEDISH PARLIAMENT TO VOTE ON ARMENIAN GENOCIDE RESOLUTION (AGAIN)

Tert.am
12:11 ~U 11.03.10

On March 11, the Swedish Parliament is set to vote on a resolution –
largely backed by opposition parties – that recognizes and condemns
the Genocide of Armenians, Assyrians and Chaldean in the break up of
the Ottoman Empire in 1915.

In an interview with Turkish agency Anadolu Ajansi, Turkish Ambassador
to Sweden Zergun Koruturk said that, in accordance with policy,
before each parliamentary election, the parliament must discuss and
vote on all items brought to the parliament.

"And the Armenian draft resolution is one of those proposals," said
the Turkish diplomat, adding that the probability that the resolution
can be adopted at the full parliamentary session is not very high as
it is backed mainly by leftist parties, while right-wing parties are
against it.

Swedish right-wing parties that back the ruling party have 7 seats
(178) more than leftist parties (171) in parliament. For the resolution
to be adopted, 175 votes are necessary.

Earlier, the Swedish Social Democratic Party had adopted a document
condemning the Genocide of Armenians, Assyrians and Chaldean. It had
also decided to bring it to a vote in the parliament.

Another similar resolution had been brought to the Swedish parliament
in 2007, but it was voted down.

Turkish news source Today’s Zaman cites Swedish anonymous sources
who say that the authorities believe the Armenian Genocide should be
addressed by a committee of historians, and not in parliament.

PRESIDENT SARGSYAN MEETS REPRESENTATIVES OF THE FRENCH ARMENIAN COMMUNITY
Nelly Danielyan

"Radiolur"
11.03.2010 12:10
Paris

Within the framework of the official visit to France President Serzh
Sargsyan had meetings with the Chairman of the French Senate, Gerard
Larshe, and Chairman of the National Assembly Bernard Accoyer.

Emphasizing the special role of the parliaments of the two countries in
the further deepening of the traditional friendly and warm relations
between Armenia and France, President Sarsyan praised the activity
of the France-Armenian Deputy Friendship Group and the current level
of cooperation between the parliaments of the two countries within
international organizations.

At Gerard Larshe’s request, President Sargsyan presented Armenia’s
approaches towards the process of negotiations on the Karabakh conflict
settlement, regional issues and the perspectives of normalization of
the Armenian-Turkish relations.

At the end of the official visit to France Serzh Sargsyan met
prominent representatives of the Armenian community, including
Charles Aznavour, Patrick Devejyan and Jansem. The discussions
focused on Armenian-Turkish relations and the recognition of the
Armenian Genocide.

Charles Aznavour considers that the normalization of the
Armenian-Turkish relations could give new momentum to process of
recognition of the Armenian Genocide.

"We declare that we hope for normalization. Turkey also declares it
hopes, but we do not know to what extent their words and intentions
coincide. I think the recognition of the Genocide could give new
breath to the Armenian-Turkish relations," Aznavour said.

CROWN PRINCE OF ABU DHABI INVITED TO VISIT YEREVAN

Aysor
March 9 2010
Armenia

Armenia’s Vice Prime Minister Armen Gevorkian has invited Sheikh
Mohammed bin Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan, the Crown Prince of Abu
Dhabi and Deputy Supreme Commander of the UAE Armed Forces, to visit
Armenian capital city of Yerevan.

A spokesperson for the Foreign Ministry of Armenia said that the
invitation had been handed to Crown Prince by Armenia’s Ambassador
to UAE Vahagn Melikian.

‘FLOWERS INSTEAD OF RIGHTS?’: AN ‘ALTERNATIVE’ WAY TO CELEBRATE INTERNATIONAL WOMEN’S DAY IN ARMENIA

Tert.am
08.03.10

>From March 8 to April 7, in honour of International Women’s Day,
the Women’s Resource Center in Armenia (WRCA) will be coordinating
a number of events aimed at raising awareness on women’s rights.

According to the NGO’s Facebook event page, the "WRCA is calling on
everyone to stop killing the flowers by offering bouquets for the
occasion to women and suggests to join its different activities and
raise the issue of women’s rights in Armenia."

The line-up of events begins on March 9 with a public opinion poll
asking "What is March 8 and what does it mean to you?

A series of discussions on such topics as the image of women in
advertising, and feminism and March 8 are planned for March 19, April
3 and every Wednesday beginning this week at 6 pm at the WRCA offices.

Other events include an evening of "Music and Words" on March 26
beginning at 6 pm at the Bridge Club in central Yerevan, and an art
exhibit running from March 30 to April 11 (6-9 pm) at the Yerevan
State Chamber Theatre.

TURKEY’S MILITARY LEADERS SHOULD EXERCISE RESTRAINT: THE NEW YORK TIMES

Tert.am
08.03.10

The recent arrest or detention of dozens of Turkish military officers
for plotting an alleged coup could signal a significant shift in
power from the tarnished army to civilian leadership. These cases
could help strengthen Turkish democracy – provided the government
and the judiciary scrupulously apply the rule of law, reads a March
8 editorial piece in The New York Times.

For most of modern Turkey’s history, the army has been dominant,
and far too willing to use any means to keep Turkey a secular,
Western-oriented state.

That included overthrowing four democratically elected governments
since 1960.

As recently as 2007, writes The New York Times, the military tried to
block Abdullah Gul of the Islamic-influenced Justice and Development
Party (AKP) being selected as president largely on the ground that
his wife wore an Islamic headscarf.

The military’s hold on political life has weakened steadily under AKP
rule and pressure from the European Union, which has insisted that
as part of Ankara’s bid for membership, the military must become more
accountable to civilian leaders.

The recent detentions and arrests came after a small independent
newspaper, Taraf, published what it said were military documents from
a 2003 meeting describing preparations for a coup.

The military acknowledged the meeting but said it was focused only
on protecting the country from external, not domestic, threats. Since
the arrests, the military’s top leaders have shown welcome restraint.

Meanwhile, relations with the United States hit a new rut on Thursday
when the House Foreign Affairs Committee denounced the World War I
mass killings of Armenians as genocide and approved H.Res.252.

Instead of threatening Washington with retaliation for the vote,
Ankara should focus on getting a normalization deal with Armenia back
on track.

The United States and other Western countries need to keep nudging
Turkey forward while keeping the hope of EU membership alive and
credible.

Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan needs to curb his own autocratic
tendencies and push for replacing the military-imposed constitution
with one that enshrines rights for Kurds and other minorities,
religious and press freedoms, a commitment to secular rule and a
law-based judiciary. And Turkey’s military leaders need to continue
exercising restraint.

Aysor, Armenia
March 6 2010

US State Dept. doesn’t look with favor on Resolution’s approval

U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton told congressmen that the
passage of the resolution, calling the mass killings, deportations and
executions of Armenians in 1915 in Turkey as Genocide, will damage the
U.S.-Turkey relations, which are already fragile. So, probably, the
Obama administration will urge Congress to hold off on the Resolution
252.

The House of Representatives Foreign Affairs Committee passed
Thursday, March 4, the Resolution 252, declaring the Ottoman-era
killing of Armenians as genocide, by a vote of 23 to 22. Turkey
immediately said recalls its Ambassador to the U.S. for consultations.
Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan said that the Resolution’s
approval will influence the relations between Turkey and the U.S. and
will call off the process of reconciliation between Turkey and
Armenia.

Besides, Turkey may now deny the US access to the Turkish air base, a
staging post for Iraq.

Turkey traditionally denies mass killings, deportations, executions,
starvations and other means against the Armenian population in Turkey
that resulted in more than 1,5 million deaths among the Armenians.

Genocide of 1915 is recognized by Uruguay (recognized and condemned
earliest, 1965), Russia, France, Italy, Netherlands, Germany, Belgium,
Poland, Lithuania, Slovakia, Sweden, Switzerland, Greece, Cyprus,
Lebanon, Canada, Chile, Argentina, and 42 States of America; by
Vatican, the European Parliament, and the World Council of Churches.

news.az, Azerbaijan
March 6 2010

Obama administration adopts different approach, which clearly failed – analyst
Sat 06 March 2010 | 05:06 GMT Text size:

Dr. Svante E. Cornell News.Az interviews Dr. Svante E. Cornell,
Research Director of the Central Asia-Caucasus Institute.

How would you comment the decision of the Committee on Foreign Affairs
of the House of Representatives on `Armenian genocide’?

It is an unfortunate decision, although it was predictable. It is not
the first time it happens on the level of the Committee.
Interestingly, the vote was very close, which suggest great opposition
to the politicization of history and an understanding of the dangers
for US national interests of this largely symbolic US move.

Will this decision harm US-Turkish relations?

Of course. But the main damage would be if the full House of
Representatives votes in the same way, which is not certain.

Doesn’t it mean the end of ratification of Turkish-Armenian protocols
and normalization of relations between the two countries?

It will be extremely difficult to envisage the normalization of
Turkish-Armenian relations under these conditions, and it is one
further example of how the U.S. Government, including the Obama
administration as well as Congress, have mismanaged this issue from
the start.

Could it be any negative impact on the Karabakh process after the
decision of US congressmen?

The impact will primarily be on Turkey and Turkey’s relations with the
US and with Armenia. That, in turn, affect Azerbaijan and the Karabakh
conflict. However, it is important for Azerbaijan not to be
excessively involved in the issue. This is not Azerbaijan’s fight.

Is Turkey strong enough to overcome a pressure from US on the
`Genocide’ issue and border problem with Armenia?

American pressure, in the current Turkish domestic environment, risks
being extremely counter-productive. If American leaders believe the
threat of genocide recognition would make Turkey more likely to open
the border with Armenia, they are likely making a huge mistake. It
would make it almost impossible for a Turkish politician to support
the opening of the Armenian border, since it would be seen as giving
in to undue and unjust pressure from the United States.

Turkish authorities say that they never open border with Armenia after
withdrawal Armenian troops from Azeri land. Do you believe that US
will finally take into account this position?

US diplomats not long ago understood this issue, and followed a
constructive policy pushing in parallel for the Turkish-Armenian and
Armenian-Azerbaijani reconciliation processes. Unfortunately, the
Obama administration adopted a different approach, which has clearly
failed. It is to be hoped that a more realistic approach gains ground
in the U.S. Government.

Dr. Svante E. Cornell is Research Director of the Central
Asia-Caucasus Institute & Silk Road Studies Program Joint Center and a
co-founder of the Institute for Security and Development Policy.

Aliyah Fridman
News.Az

Trend, Azerbaijan
March 5 2010

Azerbaijani Presidential Administration condemns U.S. Congress’s decision
05.03.2010 15:07

Azerbaijan, Baku, March 5 / Trend News A.Huseynbala /

The Azerbaijani Presidential Administration categorically condemned
the adoption of the resolution recognizing the so-called "Armenian
genocide" by the U.S. House of Representatives Foreign Affairs
Committee.

Such step by the U.S congressmen is mistaken and unfair, Azerbaijani
Presidential Administration Socio-Political Department Head Ali
Hasanov said in his interview with the media outlets.

"All the nations and states that were involved in World War I (WWI)
suffered losses in the course of events taken place in one of the
fronts of WWI in 1915. The question of who suffered more losses and
who less, or what the war’s results were for it, should be addressed
not by the Congressmen of the country, claiming the title of world
superpower, but by independent historians and researchers," Hasanov
said.

Hasanov said the Azerbaijani government condemns this step by the U.S.
congressmen, and brings to attention that this decision was
unilateral, unjust, pro-Armenian and anti-Turk in spirit. "We believe
this decision also does not correlate strongly with the interests of
the United States and the American people, and seriously damages the
international image of this country," he said.

Hasanov also expressed confidence that receiving the required
assessment from the U.S Congress House of Representatives, the Foreign
Affairs Committee’s decision will be withdrawn, and the U.S.
government will be released from this unfair responsibility.

Firedoglake
March 5 2010

Another Year, Another Armenian Genocide Vote, Another Set Of Tensions
With Turkey
By: David Dayen Friday March 5, 2010 11:13 am

This is about as predictable as the sunrise. Since the Democrats have
been in power, every year around the commemoration of the Armenian
genocide the House Foreign Affairs Committee passes a nonbinding
resolution calling it, you know, a genocide, and Turkey responds by
recalling its ambassador, and the President, whether Bush or Obama,
tries to soothe tensions by gently rebuking the House panel.

Howard Berman is the chair of the committee and there’s a substantial
Armenian population in and around his House district, so this will
happen basically every year. And Turkey will get mad, and the bill
won’t get a vote on the floor, and they’ll relent. It’s boring
already.

Perhaps when the US military has a lesser connection to the region,
the Administration will be more willing to call a clear extermination
a genocide. Or perhaps if reconciliation talks between Turkey and
Armenia proceed, this issue will work itself out. Otherwise, it’s
mainly political posturing meant to please a narrow constituency in
Southern California, and at the same time a batting down of that
posturing meant to please the Turks and keep their air force bases and
supply lines open.

her-year-another-armenian-genocide-vote-another-se t-of-tensions-with-turkey/