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BUENOS AIRES: Erdogan Cancellation Sparks Controversy

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  • BUENOS AIRES: Erdogan Cancellation Sparks Controversy

    ERDOGAN CANCELLATION SPARKS CONTROVERSY
    By Pablo Krause

    Buenos Aires Herald
    http://www.buenosairesherald.com/BreakingNews/View/35044
    May 31 2010
    Argentina

    The cancellation of the visit by Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip
    Erdogan, who was scheduled to arrive in Buenos Aires yesterday
    but suspended his trip late on Saturday, led to the governments of
    President Cristina Fernández de Kirchner and Buenos Aires City Mayor
    Mauricio Macri swapping the blame.

    The CFK administration released a statement late on Saturday citing
    the cancellation of a ceremony scheduled for this morning to place a
    bust in honour of Mustafa Kemal Ataturk (the founder of the modern
    Turkish Republic) as the reason for Erdogan's decision and blaming
    the Macri administration for the incident. However, City Hall rejected
    the accusations and claimed that no such ceremony was scheduled.

    Yesterday, the city Foreign Affairs Department released an official
    statement expressing its regret over the suspension of Erdogan's
    visit but insisting that the alleged ceremony was never on City
    Hall's schedule.

    "In reference to the statements of the Foreign Ministry, we insist the
    alleged ceremony as well as the placing of a bust of former Premier
    Ataturk was never authorized or communicated to that Ministry or
    the Turkish Embassy and it would have required a law approved by the
    local legislature in order to carry it out," read the statement.

    Asked by the Herald about the incident, PRO Foreign Affairs Secretary
    Diego Guelar said: "The Turkish Embassy requested permission from the
    Public Space Ministry to erect a monument to Ataturk about six months
    ago, allegedly in replacement of an existing bust, but the ministry
    confirmed there was no previous bust so the request did not progress."

    Guelar claimed: "There was never any ceremony scheduled neither was
    there an existing Ataturk bust to replace" and insisted such a bill
    would have needed the approval of the Mayor and the city legislature.

    "There was no such ceremony on the schedule of Mauricio (Macri)
    for Monday," Guelar told the Herald.

    "We don't know why the tribute was in the Ambassador's agenda because
    it would have required a resolution signed by Macri, which he didn't,"
    added the Foreign Affairs Secretary of PRO.

    Guelar claimed City Hall became aware of the ceremony on Friday when
    the Armenian community requested an interview with Environment and
    Public Space Minister Diego Santilli to protest against the display
    of the Turkish founder's bust, which was due to be unveiled in a park
    at the intersection of Figueroa Alcorta and Sarmiento avenues.

    The Armenian community published a paid ad in a local newspaper on
    Saturday, repudiating Erdogan's visit and making reference to the
    inauguration of Ataturk's statue. Later on Saturday, the Foreign
    Ministry confirmed the Turkish Prime Minister had cancelled his
    visit and said Erdogan took offence at "a decision by Buenos Aires
    Mayor Mauricio Macri to cancel a scheduled tribute in which he was
    to take part."

    Foreign Ministry sources consulted by the Herald yesterday denied the
    City Hall statements and insisted the ceremony was part of Erdogan's
    agenda for his visit.

    Sources claimed Erdogan himself told Taiana in Brazil the suspension
    of the ceremony was the reason of his cancellation.

    In statements to local media, Turkish Ambassador to Buenos Aires
    Hayri Hayret Yalav said the procedures for the monument "started in
    November, 2009 and there was no problem until yesterday (for Saturday)
    when Santilli informed me in a letter that the monument would not
    be placed."

    News agency Reuters reported Turkey's Foreign Ministry confirmed in
    a statement the two-day visit scheduled had been cancelled and blamed
    the move on Armenian lobbyists.

    "The trip was cancelled because written permission for the monument
    given to Turkey beforehand by the Buenos Aires district was reversed
    as a result of initiatives by the Armenian lobby, which is opposed
    to Turkey," said the statement, adding Turkey hoped Argentina would
    take steps to remove the shadow cast on Turco-Argentine relations.

    According to Reuters, President Fernández de Kirchner spoke with
    Erdogan to explain she could not overrule the decision, yet he found
    this unacceptable and decided not to go, the statement added.

    The Herald was unable to reach Turkish Embassy sources yesterday but a
    brief statement was released informing the cancellation of a forum at
    a downtown hotel where Erdogan was scheduled to participate, quoting
    "last-minute changes in the Prime Minister's agenda."

    Despite the official explanations and the exchange of accusations
    between the city and national governments, several rumours spread
    about the reasons behind Erdogan's cancellation.

    City Hall sources which requested not to be named said the incident
    "could have been a misunderstanding on the part of the Turkish Embassy,
    which might have assumed the ceremony was already scheduled, despite
    having received no confirmation from the city government."

    On the other hand, a source from the Foreign Ministry consulted by
    the Herald, who also requested that their name not be published, said
    there was "a verbal agreement" between Macri and the Turkish Embassy
    for the ceremony but the city administration decided to cancel it
    following the protests of the Armenian community.

    Mustafa Kemal Ataturk, the first Turkish President and founder of the
    Republic of Turkey, is highly revered by Turks, but Armenians cite him
    as one of the main culprits for the mass killing of Armenians in 1915,
    known as "the Armenian Genocide."

    All officials consulted agreed the cancellation was a serious incident
    and an offence to the Turkish Prime Minister, comparing the situation
    to a last-minute suspension of a monument to national independence
    hero José de San Martín or a memorial of the Malvinas War during
    the visit of an Argentine president to a foreign country.

    Some observers had even cited a possible link between the cancellation
    of Erdogan's visit and the nuclear fuel agreement signed by Iran --
    which Brazil and Turkey have supported despite the protests from the
    United States and on which Argentina has not yet taken a position.

    However, all sources consulted by the Herald denied such possibility
    both on and off the record.




    From: A. Papazian
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