German Parliament Labels Armenians' Killings by Ottoman Turks as Genocide
Turkey's deputy prime minister describes resolution as 'historic mistake,' foreign minister says 'irresponsible and groundless' decisions are no way to cover up own dark history.
The Associated Press and Reuters 02.06.2016 13:41 Updated: 1:54 PM
People lay flowers at the Tsitsernakaberd Armenian Genocide Memorial in Yerevan, April 21, 2015.AFP
Of course there was an Armenian genocide: Why Benny Ziffer is just plain wrong
Israel needs to recognize the Armenian genocide - and the Nakba
U.S. Jewish umbrella group recognizes Armenian genocide
The German Parliament has approved a motion labeling the killings of Armenians by Ottoman Turks a century ago as genocide.
The resolution passed Thursday with support from all the parties in Parliament. It was put forward by Chancellor Angela Merkel's conservative bloc, their partners in the government, the Social Democrats, and the opposition Greens.
Turkey's Deputy Prime Minister and government spokesman, Numan Kurtulmus, reacted by describing Germany's resolution as a "historic mistake." Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu said "irresponsible and groundless" decisions were no way to cover up one's own dark history.
"The way to close the dark pages in your own history is not to besmirch the history of other countries with irresponsible and groundless parliamentary decisions," he wrote on Twitter.
Turkey's Prime Minister Binali Yildirim said earlier this week his country would not nix a deal with the European Union on curbing the flow of migrants to Europe over the motion, but told party officials in Ankara earlier Thursday that the vote was a "true test of friendship."
Historians estimate that up to 1.5 million Armenians were killed by Ottoman Turks around the time of World War I, an event viewed by many scholars as the 20th century's first genocide.
Turkey denies that the killings that started in 1915 were genocide and contends the dead were victims of civil war and unrest. Ankara also insists the death toll has been inflated.
Opening Thursday's debate, Parliament speaker Norbert Lammert acknowledged that addressing historical events can be painful.
"But we have also seen that an honest and self-critical appraisal of the past does not endanger relations with other countries," he said. "In fact, it is a precondition for understanding, reconciliation and cooperation."
He said Turkey's current government is not responsible for what happened 100 years ago, "but it shares responsibility for what happens with it in the future."
read more:
http://www.haaretz.com/world-news/europe/1.722800
