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HENRI REYNAUD: THE YEAR 1915 IS AN OPEN SORE, WHICH WILL NOT HEAL UP UNTIL THE GENOCIDE DENIAL CAMPAIGN IS STOPPED
by Oksana Musaelyan
arminfo
Thursday, February 16, 14:31
In an interview to ArmInfo, French Ambassador to Armenia Henri Reynaud
comments on the situation around the bill adopted by French Senate
The relations between Armenia and France have reached heights after the
French Senate adopted the bill criminalizing the denial of genocides,
including the Armenian Genocide. How would you assess this event
in general?
The relations between Armenia and France cover a wider context. The
issue of criminalization of the Armenian Genocide denial has already
been discussed after adoption of the relevant bill on 29 Jan 2001,
by which France publicly recognized the Armenian Genocide. By this
decision France wanted to protect its citizens in its territory by
putting an end to the questioning or palliation of the crime of the
genocide, as defined in Article 211-1 of the Criminal Code.
The bill does not mention any historical event or any country. In
general, it aims to protect the insulted memory, and it will be
applied in France only in case of extremely insulting statements. The
bill meets the expectations of a great number of French citizens of
Armenian origin, for whom the year 1915 is an open sore, which will
not heal up until the Genocide denial campaign is stopped.
You are well aware that a group of MPs have laid two actions to the
Constitutional Council of France, which is to give a legal force to
the decision by late February. Various political forces of Armenia
perceived this bill as a crucial stage in the almost 100-year struggle
against the genocide denial. On this occasion, numerous Armenians
expressed their gratitude to France.
What do you think about Ankara's reaction and threats to introduce
sanctions regarding military, economic and political ties with France?
Turkey is an ally and an important partner of France, and for many
years the sides have fixed essential progress in many spheres. We
have been always cooperating in the matter of development of the
bilateral relations, as well as within NATO or the G8. We exerted
joint efforts aimed at stopping the violence in Syria, establishing
peace and stability in Afghanistan, as well as within the programs on
development of cooperation with the Mediterranean countries. Under the
current circumstances, France comes out for a dialogue with Turkey,
as well as for preserving the way to mutually beneficial cooperation,
since France is the third big foreign investor in Turkey, and the
French companies provide 100,000 job places in Turkey.
What is Paris going to do to consolidate its position in this issue
and to neutralize the negative consequences of the ultimatum of Ankara?
We advocate maintenance of peaceful relations with Turkey. France
has called on the authorities of Turkey to abstain from "strong
counteraction" and to understand that it is necessary to appreciate
the whole depth of the bilateral relations.
What do you think about the accusations of the Azeri ruling parties,
which qualified France's stance as "biased" and pointed out the
necessity to withdraw France from the OSCE Minsk Group?
Azerbaijan has not made any statements demanding that France should
be excluded from the OSCE Minsk Group. On the contrary, on January 23
in Sochi the presidents of Armenia and Azerbaijan highly estimated the
intermediary efforts of the OSCE Minsk Group co-chair countries. They
want Russia, the United States and France to continue playing an
active role in the Karabakh peace process until peace and stability
are established in the region.
From: A. Papazian
by Oksana Musaelyan
arminfo
Thursday, February 16, 14:31
In an interview to ArmInfo, French Ambassador to Armenia Henri Reynaud
comments on the situation around the bill adopted by French Senate
The relations between Armenia and France have reached heights after the
French Senate adopted the bill criminalizing the denial of genocides,
including the Armenian Genocide. How would you assess this event
in general?
The relations between Armenia and France cover a wider context. The
issue of criminalization of the Armenian Genocide denial has already
been discussed after adoption of the relevant bill on 29 Jan 2001,
by which France publicly recognized the Armenian Genocide. By this
decision France wanted to protect its citizens in its territory by
putting an end to the questioning or palliation of the crime of the
genocide, as defined in Article 211-1 of the Criminal Code.
The bill does not mention any historical event or any country. In
general, it aims to protect the insulted memory, and it will be
applied in France only in case of extremely insulting statements. The
bill meets the expectations of a great number of French citizens of
Armenian origin, for whom the year 1915 is an open sore, which will
not heal up until the Genocide denial campaign is stopped.
You are well aware that a group of MPs have laid two actions to the
Constitutional Council of France, which is to give a legal force to
the decision by late February. Various political forces of Armenia
perceived this bill as a crucial stage in the almost 100-year struggle
against the genocide denial. On this occasion, numerous Armenians
expressed their gratitude to France.
What do you think about Ankara's reaction and threats to introduce
sanctions regarding military, economic and political ties with France?
Turkey is an ally and an important partner of France, and for many
years the sides have fixed essential progress in many spheres. We
have been always cooperating in the matter of development of the
bilateral relations, as well as within NATO or the G8. We exerted
joint efforts aimed at stopping the violence in Syria, establishing
peace and stability in Afghanistan, as well as within the programs on
development of cooperation with the Mediterranean countries. Under the
current circumstances, France comes out for a dialogue with Turkey,
as well as for preserving the way to mutually beneficial cooperation,
since France is the third big foreign investor in Turkey, and the
French companies provide 100,000 job places in Turkey.
What is Paris going to do to consolidate its position in this issue
and to neutralize the negative consequences of the ultimatum of Ankara?
We advocate maintenance of peaceful relations with Turkey. France
has called on the authorities of Turkey to abstain from "strong
counteraction" and to understand that it is necessary to appreciate
the whole depth of the bilateral relations.
What do you think about the accusations of the Azeri ruling parties,
which qualified France's stance as "biased" and pointed out the
necessity to withdraw France from the OSCE Minsk Group?
Azerbaijan has not made any statements demanding that France should
be excluded from the OSCE Minsk Group. On the contrary, on January 23
in Sochi the presidents of Armenia and Azerbaijan highly estimated the
intermediary efforts of the OSCE Minsk Group co-chair countries. They
want Russia, the United States and France to continue playing an
active role in the Karabakh peace process until peace and stability
are established in the region.
From: A. Papazian