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Turkish FM Blasts French Lawmakers

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  • Turkish FM Blasts French Lawmakers

    TURKISH FM BLASTS FRENCH LAWMAKERS

    press tv
    Thu Dec 29, 2011 5:52PM GMT

    Turkey's Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu Turkey's Foreign Minister
    Ahmet Davutoglu has condemned French lawmakers for passing a bill
    which bans denial of the disputed Armenian genocide during World War I.

    On December 22, the French national Assembly voted to back a law
    that would make it illegal for anyone in France to deny that the 1915
    killings of Armenians during World War I amounted to genocide.

    The law, which is awaiting a final approval at French Senate, will see
    offenders face a year in jail and a fine of 45,000 euros (USD 58,000)
    in France, where the 1915 killings of Armenians were recognized as
    genocide in 2001.

    "Do not build imperialist plans on others' pains," Davutoglu said at
    a news conference in northwestern province of Edirne on Thursday.

    The move sparked outrage in Turkey, and promoted Ankara to recall
    its ambassador to France.

    Ankara, which had already warned to serious consequences if France
    pushed ahead to adopt the law, also suspended its political and
    military cooperation with Paris after the vote.

    Hours after the bill was passed, Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip
    Erdogan condemned the approval of the "racist" bill proposed by French
    President Nicolas Sarkozy's ruling party.

    He said the decision had opened "very grave" and "irreparable" wounds
    in Ankara-Paris relations.

    He insisted that no genocide had ever happened the history of his
    country, and accused the French ruling party of "using Turkophobia
    and Islamophobia" to win the support of Armenians living in France
    ahead of the 2012 presidential election.

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