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ANKARA: Turkey calls for a 'new beginning' with Armenia

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  • ANKARA: Turkey calls for a 'new beginning' with Armenia

    Journal of Turkish Weekly
    Jan 20 2015


    Turkey calls for a 'new beginning' with Armenia


    20 January 2015

    Turkish Prime Minister Ahmet DavutoÄ?lu has called on all Armenians to
    jointly seek ways to resolve their historical differences with Turkey,
    stressing that it is a must for Turks and Armenians to "engage in
    humane relations and to recognize each other in light of 800 years of
    common history."

    `It's possible for two ancient people to have the maturity to
    understand each other and to look to the future together. Turks and
    Armenians, sharing the same geography and long history, can only talk
    to each other about their problems and seek together ways to resolve
    them. It is a necessity for us to develop mutual trust and
    cooperation, to know each other again in light of our 800 years of
    common history, and to engage in a humane relationship,' DavutoÄ?lu
    said in a written statement issued on Jan. 20, a day after the eighth
    anniversary of the assassination of Turkish-Armenian journalist Hrant
    Dink.

    `With this understanding, we invite our Armenian friends to pay more
    visits to Turkey in order to remove mutual prejudices,' he added.

    DavutoÄ?lu's call to Armenians comes on the centennial anniversary of
    the mass killings of Armenians at the hands of the Ottoman Empire
    during World War I, recognized as the Armenian genocide by a number of
    countries. Armenia is preparing to hold massive ceremonies to mark the
    100th anniversary in Yerevan on April 24 and has invited Turkish
    President Recep Tayyip ErdoÄ?an to the events. Ankara, on the other
    hand, is planning to mark the 100th anniversary of the Battle of
    Gallipoli and extended an invitation to Armenian President Serzh
    Sargsyan to attend the ceremony in western Turkey. Sargsyan
    immediately turned the invitation down.

    In his Jan. 20 statement, DavutoÄ?lu also vowed that Turkey will
    continue to value "prominent Armenian figures who have contributed to
    the preservation of Armenian cultural artifacts and Ottoman/Turkish
    culture."

    `It's our candid wish to re-establish friendships, heal wounds and
    share sufferings. Our vision is of friendship and peace,' he stated.

    Describing Dink as an `Anatolian intellectual', who abandoned neither
    his Armenian roots nor his loyalty to Turkey and sought ways for both
    Turks and Armenians to build a common future, the prime minister said
    he was "committed to following the torch lit by Dink."

    `We invite everyone believing in Turkish-Armenian friendship to
    contribute to a new beginning, and we want to call out to all
    Armenians: Having already stated that the policies of forced
    deportation implemented in war conditions, in 1915, created inhuman
    consequences, Turkey shares the suffering of Armenians. It makes
    efforts to once again establish sympathy between the two people with
    patience and commitment,' DavutoÄ?lu said.

    He also described the official message of condolence issued by Turkey
    on April 23, 2014 as a "clear and concrete expression of Turkey's
    intention to overcome this problem."

    `The way to leave the great tragedy that had frozen history in 1915 is
    to break taboos. Turkey, for its part, has moved beyond this point and
    left stereotypical rhetoric and generalizations in the past,'
    DavutoÄ?lu stated.

    20 January 2015

    http://www.turkishweekly.net/news/178896/turkey-calls-for-a-39-new-beginning-39-with-armenia.html



    From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress
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