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Daily Sabah, Turkey
April 25 2014
EU AND US WELCOME ERDOÄ?AN'S 1915 INCIDENT STATEMENT
by Daily Sabah
Published : 25.04.2014 00:29:17
ANKARA ' Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip ErdoÄ?an's historic
message on Wednesday to the grandchildren of Armenians who lost their
lives during the 1915 incidents, on the eve of the 99th anniversary of
the incidents, has received extensive media coverage both in Turkey
and across the world. Opposition parties in the Turkish Parliament,
the EU and the U.S. commented on ErdoÄ?an's message and while it is
welcomed by the international community and Turkish citizens to a
large extent, ErdoÄ?an's condolences have been met with an array of
reactions by certain groups. The EU welcomed ErdoÄ?an's message, with
European Commissioner for Enlargement and European Neighborhood Policy
Stefan Füle posting a statement on his Twitter account. "Welcome
statement of PM ErdoÄ?an on Armenians, reconciliation is key EU value.
Hope steps in this spirit will follow," Füle tweeted. In the U.S.,
State Department spokeswoman Jen Psaki said in a daily press briefing
on Wednesday that Washington welcomed ErdoÄ?an's historic public
acknowledgement of the suffering that Armenians experienced in 1915.
"We believe this is a positive indication that there can be a full,
frank and just acknowledgement of the facts, which we hope will
advance the cause of reconciliation between Turks and Armenians," she
added.
On the same day that ErdoÄ?an offer his condolences, Armenian President
Serzh Sargsyan posted an official message on his website. In his
statement, Sargsyan stated that Armenia does not consider Turkey an
enemy but accused ErdoÄ?an of "utter denial" of the 1915 incidents that
are seen as "genocide" by the Armenian side.
Without referring to ErdoÄ?an's message, Sargsyan said, "I publicly
reaffirm: We do not consider Turkish society as our enemy. Bowing to
the memory of the innocent victims we remember all those Turks,
Turkish families who lent a helping hand to their Armenian neighbors."
Regarding the Prime Ministry's condolences and reiteration of Turkey's
offer to open the Ottoman archives, Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmet
Davutoglu on Wednesday expressed his hope that Turkey's call to
Armenia for joint academic research on the events of 1915 will be
answered. "History is not just black and white, a grey area is needed.
Everyone needs to show virtue by sharing the pains of the past,"
Davutoglu said. Highlighting that Turkey's move could be surprising to
some, the foreign minister continued, "However, everyone is aware of
Turkey's humanitarian and universal attitude towards the pains of
humanity...We call on Armenia not only to display a common and
humanitarian attitude, but also to build a future together," he added.
Turkish Interior Minister Efkan Ala said that ErdoÄ?an's condolences to
Armenians reflect Turkey's "self-confidence," adding that in the past,
Turkey always took a defensive stance in response to such statements,
but ErdoÄ?an's proactive attitude shows there is a change in Turkey due
to the country's domestic stability.
Turkey's main opposition Republican People's Party (CHP) welcomed
ErdoÄ?an's message. CHP Vice Chairman Faruk Logoglu said, "As CHP, we
also hope that all the people who lost their lives in the beginning of
20th century rest in peace without any discrimination. We also share
the pain of those people's grandchildren."
Logoglu said that ErdoÄ?an's message was also significant in terms of
timing but suggested that the reason ErdoÄ?an chose 2014 to deliver the
message after 12 years in power should be questioned. The vice
chairman further accused the AK Party of politicizing religion,
education, the judiciary and history as well. He said, "They are
exploiting the history of the people who lived in these lands for
political gain."
The harshest reaction came from the Nationalist Movement Party (MHP).
MHP leader Devlet Bahçeli harshly criticized ErdoÄ?an by saying that
the Turkish nation has no fault in its history to apologize for.
Accusing ErdoÄ?an of insulting his Prime Ministry post, Bahçeli said
that ErdoÄ?an was trying to win the favor of the Armenian diaspora and
that his message does not reflect the reality of Turkey and its
nation.
April 25 2014
EU AND US WELCOME ERDOÄ?AN'S 1915 INCIDENT STATEMENT
by Daily Sabah
Published : 25.04.2014 00:29:17
ANKARA ' Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip ErdoÄ?an's historic
message on Wednesday to the grandchildren of Armenians who lost their
lives during the 1915 incidents, on the eve of the 99th anniversary of
the incidents, has received extensive media coverage both in Turkey
and across the world. Opposition parties in the Turkish Parliament,
the EU and the U.S. commented on ErdoÄ?an's message and while it is
welcomed by the international community and Turkish citizens to a
large extent, ErdoÄ?an's condolences have been met with an array of
reactions by certain groups. The EU welcomed ErdoÄ?an's message, with
European Commissioner for Enlargement and European Neighborhood Policy
Stefan Füle posting a statement on his Twitter account. "Welcome
statement of PM ErdoÄ?an on Armenians, reconciliation is key EU value.
Hope steps in this spirit will follow," Füle tweeted. In the U.S.,
State Department spokeswoman Jen Psaki said in a daily press briefing
on Wednesday that Washington welcomed ErdoÄ?an's historic public
acknowledgement of the suffering that Armenians experienced in 1915.
"We believe this is a positive indication that there can be a full,
frank and just acknowledgement of the facts, which we hope will
advance the cause of reconciliation between Turks and Armenians," she
added.
On the same day that ErdoÄ?an offer his condolences, Armenian President
Serzh Sargsyan posted an official message on his website. In his
statement, Sargsyan stated that Armenia does not consider Turkey an
enemy but accused ErdoÄ?an of "utter denial" of the 1915 incidents that
are seen as "genocide" by the Armenian side.
Without referring to ErdoÄ?an's message, Sargsyan said, "I publicly
reaffirm: We do not consider Turkish society as our enemy. Bowing to
the memory of the innocent victims we remember all those Turks,
Turkish families who lent a helping hand to their Armenian neighbors."
Regarding the Prime Ministry's condolences and reiteration of Turkey's
offer to open the Ottoman archives, Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmet
Davutoglu on Wednesday expressed his hope that Turkey's call to
Armenia for joint academic research on the events of 1915 will be
answered. "History is not just black and white, a grey area is needed.
Everyone needs to show virtue by sharing the pains of the past,"
Davutoglu said. Highlighting that Turkey's move could be surprising to
some, the foreign minister continued, "However, everyone is aware of
Turkey's humanitarian and universal attitude towards the pains of
humanity...We call on Armenia not only to display a common and
humanitarian attitude, but also to build a future together," he added.
Turkish Interior Minister Efkan Ala said that ErdoÄ?an's condolences to
Armenians reflect Turkey's "self-confidence," adding that in the past,
Turkey always took a defensive stance in response to such statements,
but ErdoÄ?an's proactive attitude shows there is a change in Turkey due
to the country's domestic stability.
Turkey's main opposition Republican People's Party (CHP) welcomed
ErdoÄ?an's message. CHP Vice Chairman Faruk Logoglu said, "As CHP, we
also hope that all the people who lost their lives in the beginning of
20th century rest in peace without any discrimination. We also share
the pain of those people's grandchildren."
Logoglu said that ErdoÄ?an's message was also significant in terms of
timing but suggested that the reason ErdoÄ?an chose 2014 to deliver the
message after 12 years in power should be questioned. The vice
chairman further accused the AK Party of politicizing religion,
education, the judiciary and history as well. He said, "They are
exploiting the history of the people who lived in these lands for
political gain."
The harshest reaction came from the Nationalist Movement Party (MHP).
MHP leader Devlet Bahçeli harshly criticized ErdoÄ?an by saying that
the Turkish nation has no fault in its history to apologize for.
Accusing ErdoÄ?an of insulting his Prime Ministry post, Bahçeli said
that ErdoÄ?an was trying to win the favor of the Armenian diaspora and
that his message does not reflect the reality of Turkey and its
nation.