On the initiative in France to erect a statue commemorating the World War I losses of Armenians, the Turkish Embassy in Paris said history should not be distorted.
The statements written strongly protested that “Every nation has the right to commemorate its artists, but with the help of this statute history is being distorted,” said the statement issued by the embassy.
“Ottoman archives have been open for academic research for a long time, Turkey has no worries on the result of such a study,” added the statement.
The statement concluded, “History should be left to historians.”
The statute is expected to be opened today with a ceremony, at the anniversary of so-called Armenian genocide, with the attendance of Paris Mayor Bertrand Delanoe. Former Paris Mayor Jean Tiberi had permitted the opening of this statute.
The Turkish embassy in Paris had made many contacts with French officials to prevent the opening of this statute since 2001. French parliament’s 2001 recognition of the Armenian losses as a genocide seriously strained ties between the two countries.
Armenians say a 1915-1923 campaign to force them out of eastern Turkey amounted to genocide and some 1.5 million people were killed. Turkey, which denies the genocide, says the figures are inflated and says Armenians died during civil unrest.
Claims of Armenian genocide in Western public opinion depended on unconfirmed subjective publications and that the scientific research carried out taking into consideration the archives, removed prejudice and political approach.
Armenians in France have pushed for the opening of the statute at the anniversary of the so-called genocide for a long time.
Ankara – Turkish Daily News
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