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Hurriyet Daily News, Turkey
Dec 23 2011
Turkey cuts contacts with France over bill
ANKARA - Hürriyet Daily News
Turkish prime minister says Turkey cancels all military cooperation
and political consultation with France in protest of a resolution
penalizing denial of Armenian `genocide' which is approved by French
assembly yesterday.
Turkey announced it cancelled bilateral military and economic
cooperation and suspended all bilateral political consultation with
France, describing the French vote as doing politics via racism and
xenophobia ahead of presidential elections.
`This is the first state [of measures against France]. New measures
could be brought to the agenda and implemented according to progress
of the bill in France,' Prime Minister Recep Tayyip ErdoÄ?an said
yesterday in a joint press conference with his Ukrainian counterpart.
ErdoÄ?an blamed the French leader of trying to `gain favor over
Turcophobia and Islamophobia in general terms just for individual
ambitions.'
The prime minister said they would travel to other countries in the
world and tell of the `genocides' carried out by France, which the
country had tried to make forgotten.
As a reaction to Paris' vote, ErdoÄ?an said Turkey recalled its
ambassador to France.
`From now on, we cancel all bilateral military and economic visits,
including courses, seminars and personnel exchange activities,'
ErdoÄ?an said. Turkey would not cooperate with France in projects of
the EU, he said.
Ankara suspended all political consultations and cancelled bilateral
military activities and joint military exercises, he said.
Turkey also cancelled blanket permission for flyovers, takeoffs and
landings of French military flights, Turkey's premier said, but
individual permission would be applied.
ErdoÄ?an announced Turkey cancelled permissions of port visits by
military ships. Turkey would not participate in a bilateral economic
and trade partnership meeting in 2012, he said.
The prime minister thanked prudent French politicians who rejected the
bill. `We hope they would not go a way with no return,' he said.
Storm of outrage
The adoption of the bill sparked condemnations across the political spectrum.
EU Minister Egemen BaÄ?ıÅ? denounced the bill as a breach of EU acquis.
`Freedom of expression is one of the most important goals of the EU.
The EU and EU member states, which say they care about freedom of
expression, are assuming a very wrong attitude by trying to limit
freedom of expression,' he said. Turkey would not let this resolution
affect its EU membership process, he said.
BaÄ?ıÅ? also said France owed Turkey `a historic apology' for having
failed to protect Turkish diplomats and other citizens who were killed
on its soil by the Armenian terrorist group ASALA.
Some of the harshest reactions came from Nationalist Movement Party
(MHP), whose leader Devlet Bahçeli said the adoption of the bill would
go down in history as `a great scandal and a black stain.'
Bahçeli said the government's `submissive policies' emboldened `the
enmity camp erected against our country.' He said protocols aimed at
normalizing ties with Armenia must be scrapped for good and the
government must apologize for having launched the initiative.
Main opposition leader Kemal KılıçdaroÄ?lu said the bill flouted
France's deep-rooted liberal traditions. `France is betraying its own
history. France, the symbol of freedoms, is handcuffing freedom of
expression with the decisions of politicians. It is impossible to
understand.'
`Turkey may sue France'
CHP deputy Rıza Türmen, a former judge at the European Court of Human
Rights (ECHR), said Turkey has the option to sue France at the
Strasbourg-based court over the bill, but the move would bear a heavy
political cost.
The outcome of an ECHR case involving Labor Party leader DoÄ?u
Perinçek, now in jail over alleged anti-government plots regarding his
`denial' conviction in Switzerland where there is a similar law, would
be crucial, Türmen said.
The Peace and Democracy Party (BDP) joined the criticism even though
it withheld support for a joint parliamentary declaration this week.
`Parliamentary decisions cannot determine historical and sociological
events,' the BDP's Hasip Kaplan said. However, he urged Turkey to face
up to its history, pointing at Germany's example.
Dec 23 2011
Turkey cuts contacts with France over bill
ANKARA - Hürriyet Daily News
Turkish prime minister says Turkey cancels all military cooperation
and political consultation with France in protest of a resolution
penalizing denial of Armenian `genocide' which is approved by French
assembly yesterday.
Turkey announced it cancelled bilateral military and economic
cooperation and suspended all bilateral political consultation with
France, describing the French vote as doing politics via racism and
xenophobia ahead of presidential elections.
`This is the first state [of measures against France]. New measures
could be brought to the agenda and implemented according to progress
of the bill in France,' Prime Minister Recep Tayyip ErdoÄ?an said
yesterday in a joint press conference with his Ukrainian counterpart.
ErdoÄ?an blamed the French leader of trying to `gain favor over
Turcophobia and Islamophobia in general terms just for individual
ambitions.'
The prime minister said they would travel to other countries in the
world and tell of the `genocides' carried out by France, which the
country had tried to make forgotten.
As a reaction to Paris' vote, ErdoÄ?an said Turkey recalled its
ambassador to France.
`From now on, we cancel all bilateral military and economic visits,
including courses, seminars and personnel exchange activities,'
ErdoÄ?an said. Turkey would not cooperate with France in projects of
the EU, he said.
Ankara suspended all political consultations and cancelled bilateral
military activities and joint military exercises, he said.
Turkey also cancelled blanket permission for flyovers, takeoffs and
landings of French military flights, Turkey's premier said, but
individual permission would be applied.
ErdoÄ?an announced Turkey cancelled permissions of port visits by
military ships. Turkey would not participate in a bilateral economic
and trade partnership meeting in 2012, he said.
The prime minister thanked prudent French politicians who rejected the
bill. `We hope they would not go a way with no return,' he said.
Storm of outrage
The adoption of the bill sparked condemnations across the political spectrum.
EU Minister Egemen BaÄ?ıÅ? denounced the bill as a breach of EU acquis.
`Freedom of expression is one of the most important goals of the EU.
The EU and EU member states, which say they care about freedom of
expression, are assuming a very wrong attitude by trying to limit
freedom of expression,' he said. Turkey would not let this resolution
affect its EU membership process, he said.
BaÄ?ıÅ? also said France owed Turkey `a historic apology' for having
failed to protect Turkish diplomats and other citizens who were killed
on its soil by the Armenian terrorist group ASALA.
Some of the harshest reactions came from Nationalist Movement Party
(MHP), whose leader Devlet Bahçeli said the adoption of the bill would
go down in history as `a great scandal and a black stain.'
Bahçeli said the government's `submissive policies' emboldened `the
enmity camp erected against our country.' He said protocols aimed at
normalizing ties with Armenia must be scrapped for good and the
government must apologize for having launched the initiative.
Main opposition leader Kemal KılıçdaroÄ?lu said the bill flouted
France's deep-rooted liberal traditions. `France is betraying its own
history. France, the symbol of freedoms, is handcuffing freedom of
expression with the decisions of politicians. It is impossible to
understand.'
`Turkey may sue France'
CHP deputy Rıza Türmen, a former judge at the European Court of Human
Rights (ECHR), said Turkey has the option to sue France at the
Strasbourg-based court over the bill, but the move would bear a heavy
political cost.
The outcome of an ECHR case involving Labor Party leader DoÄ?u
Perinçek, now in jail over alleged anti-government plots regarding his
`denial' conviction in Switzerland where there is a similar law, would
be crucial, Türmen said.
The Peace and Democracy Party (BDP) joined the criticism even though
it withheld support for a joint parliamentary declaration this week.
`Parliamentary decisions cannot determine historical and sociological
events,' the BDP's Hasip Kaplan said. However, he urged Turkey to face
up to its history, pointing at Germany's example.