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AUSTRALIA DECIDES NOT TO ATTEND 1915 COMMEMORATIONS IN YEREVAN
Daily Sabah, Turkey
March 31 2015
DAILY SABAH
ISTANBUL
The Australian government has said it will not be officially
represented in Armenia next month as the country marks the 100th
anniversary the so-called Armenian genocide, a move that was
interpreted as support to Turkey's call to argue the 1915 incidents
based on experts analyzing history archives.
Events in Yerevan will coincide with the centenary of the Anzac
landing in Gallipoli, to which Australian Prime Minister Tony Abbott
is expected to lead a high-level delegation, the Australian SBS
reported. The Australian Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade told
SBS the Australian government will not be sending a representative
to Yerevan next month for the commemorations.
Norwegian Prime Minister Erna Solberg also recently announced that
she will not be attending the commemorations in Yerevan, highlighting
that Norway puts value on relations with Turkey.
Solber said that Norwegian executives, including herself and members
of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, will not be represented at the
commemoration ceremonies and only the ambassador will be able to
participate. According to a statement by the Norwegian Ministry of
Foreign Affairs, "The genocide allegations, which were supposedly
committed by the Ottoman Empire in 1915, are internationally disputed,"
and that the ministry would state their opinion on the matter later on.
Baard Glad Pedersen, the undersecretary of the Norwegian Prime
Minister's Office, said that conclusions regarding historical
incidents should be left for the discretion of historians and that
U.N. resolutions outline what can be considered genocide or not. "This
issue has been hotly debated in the recent years" Pedersen said.
Mertefe Bertinlioglu, a deputy from the Norwegian Conservative Party
in Oslo's Provincial Legislature, said that Solberg's decision must be
respected, adding that Turkey has called for the opening of archives
numerous times to enable historians to study and analyze the issue,
but that Armenia had never accepted this. "I also agree that this issue
should only be handled by historians and should not be exploited for
political interests," Bertinlioglu said.
The 1915 events took place during World War I when a group of Armenian
subjects of the Ottoman Empire supported a Russian invasion and
revolted against the empire, resulting in their forced relocation
to eastern Anatolia. Turkey refuses to use the term "genocide" to
refer to the incident, as many Turks also lost their lives due to
attacks carried out by Armenians in Anatolia. Meanwhile, Armenia and
the Armenian diaspora continue to campaign for the incidents to be
recognized as genocide.
In 2014, President Recep Tayyip Erdogan issued a letter expressing
condolences for the 1915 events in an unprecedented move. Turkish
officials consistently urge for the establishment of a joint historical
commission to investigate the events and call on Armenia to open
their archives as Turkey has done.
http://www.dailysabah.com/diplomacy/2015/03/31/australia-decides-not-to-attend-1915-commemorations-in-yerevan
Daily Sabah, Turkey
March 31 2015
DAILY SABAH
ISTANBUL
The Australian government has said it will not be officially
represented in Armenia next month as the country marks the 100th
anniversary the so-called Armenian genocide, a move that was
interpreted as support to Turkey's call to argue the 1915 incidents
based on experts analyzing history archives.
Events in Yerevan will coincide with the centenary of the Anzac
landing in Gallipoli, to which Australian Prime Minister Tony Abbott
is expected to lead a high-level delegation, the Australian SBS
reported. The Australian Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade told
SBS the Australian government will not be sending a representative
to Yerevan next month for the commemorations.
Norwegian Prime Minister Erna Solberg also recently announced that
she will not be attending the commemorations in Yerevan, highlighting
that Norway puts value on relations with Turkey.
Solber said that Norwegian executives, including herself and members
of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, will not be represented at the
commemoration ceremonies and only the ambassador will be able to
participate. According to a statement by the Norwegian Ministry of
Foreign Affairs, "The genocide allegations, which were supposedly
committed by the Ottoman Empire in 1915, are internationally disputed,"
and that the ministry would state their opinion on the matter later on.
Baard Glad Pedersen, the undersecretary of the Norwegian Prime
Minister's Office, said that conclusions regarding historical
incidents should be left for the discretion of historians and that
U.N. resolutions outline what can be considered genocide or not. "This
issue has been hotly debated in the recent years" Pedersen said.
Mertefe Bertinlioglu, a deputy from the Norwegian Conservative Party
in Oslo's Provincial Legislature, said that Solberg's decision must be
respected, adding that Turkey has called for the opening of archives
numerous times to enable historians to study and analyze the issue,
but that Armenia had never accepted this. "I also agree that this issue
should only be handled by historians and should not be exploited for
political interests," Bertinlioglu said.
The 1915 events took place during World War I when a group of Armenian
subjects of the Ottoman Empire supported a Russian invasion and
revolted against the empire, resulting in their forced relocation
to eastern Anatolia. Turkey refuses to use the term "genocide" to
refer to the incident, as many Turks also lost their lives due to
attacks carried out by Armenians in Anatolia. Meanwhile, Armenia and
the Armenian diaspora continue to campaign for the incidents to be
recognized as genocide.
In 2014, President Recep Tayyip Erdogan issued a letter expressing
condolences for the 1915 events in an unprecedented move. Turkish
officials consistently urge for the establishment of a joint historical
commission to investigate the events and call on Armenia to open
their archives as Turkey has done.
http://www.dailysabah.com/diplomacy/2015/03/31/australia-decides-not-to-attend-1915-commemorations-in-yerevan