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Walesa says Turkey should admit to genocide to join
Agence France Presse
April 21 2005
Polish Nobel laureate and former president Lech Walesa on Thursday
said Armenians had the right to demand that the European Union bar
Turkey from joining the bloc until it admits to committing genocide
against Armenians during World War I.
"It is a just claim of the Armenians that Turkey's entrance into the
European Union should come after admitting genocide," the former trade
union leader credited with helping trigger the fall of communism in
Eastern Europe said.
Armenia marks on Sunday the 90th anniversary of mass killings in
Ottoman Turkey which Armenia and many other countries consider to
have been genocide but which Turkey denies ever took place.
Walesa's comments come at a key time for Turkey as it prepares to
launch membership negotiations with the European Union in October.
Armenians say up to 1.5 million of their kinsmen perished in
orchestrated killings between 1915 and 1917 as the Ottoman Empire,
the predecessor of modern Turkey, was falling apart.
"The slaughter in Turkey was the first genocide of the 20th century,"
Walesa said.
Ankara counters that 300,000 Armenians and thousands of Turks were
killed in "civil strife" during World War I when the Armenians rose
against their Ottoman rulers and sided with invading Russian troops.
The Armenian claims have been damaging to Turkey's EU bid as it now
faces growing pressure from within the bloc to address the genocide
allegations in what Ankara sees as a politically motivated campaign
to damage its reputation ahead of talks.
On Tuesday Poland joined a list of 15 countries that have officially
acknowledged the killings as genocide when its parliament passed a
resolution condemning the Armenian massacres.
The decision has already drawn protest form Ankara where officials
called it "irresponsible," and said it would hurt relations.
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress
Agence France Presse
April 21 2005
Polish Nobel laureate and former president Lech Walesa on Thursday
said Armenians had the right to demand that the European Union bar
Turkey from joining the bloc until it admits to committing genocide
against Armenians during World War I.
"It is a just claim of the Armenians that Turkey's entrance into the
European Union should come after admitting genocide," the former trade
union leader credited with helping trigger the fall of communism in
Eastern Europe said.
Armenia marks on Sunday the 90th anniversary of mass killings in
Ottoman Turkey which Armenia and many other countries consider to
have been genocide but which Turkey denies ever took place.
Walesa's comments come at a key time for Turkey as it prepares to
launch membership negotiations with the European Union in October.
Armenians say up to 1.5 million of their kinsmen perished in
orchestrated killings between 1915 and 1917 as the Ottoman Empire,
the predecessor of modern Turkey, was falling apart.
"The slaughter in Turkey was the first genocide of the 20th century,"
Walesa said.
Ankara counters that 300,000 Armenians and thousands of Turks were
killed in "civil strife" during World War I when the Armenians rose
against their Ottoman rulers and sided with invading Russian troops.
The Armenian claims have been damaging to Turkey's EU bid as it now
faces growing pressure from within the bloc to address the genocide
allegations in what Ankara sees as a politically motivated campaign
to damage its reputation ahead of talks.
On Tuesday Poland joined a list of 15 countries that have officially
acknowledged the killings as genocide when its parliament passed a
resolution condemning the Armenian massacres.
The decision has already drawn protest form Ankara where officials
called it "irresponsible," and said it would hurt relations.
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress