Turkey Warns France Over Armenian 'Genocide' Bill

Artur Bagdasarian, head of the Armenian parliament, at the unveiling of a memorial stone to the victims of the Armenian 'genocide' in Marseille, France in April 2006. (epa) October 6, 2006 -- Turkey today warned France that bilateral ties will suffer "irreparable damage" if the French parliament passes a bill make it a criminal offence to deny that Armenians were the victims of a genocide during World War I.

Foreign Ministry spokesman Namik Tan appealed to French lawmakers to block the bill when it comes up for discussion on October 12.

(AFP)

Examining History

Examining History

CALL IT GENOCIDE? Questions surrounding the mass killings of Armenians at the beginning of the last century continue to dominate relations between Armenia and Turkey. In April, Ankara proposed conducting a joint Armenian-Turkish investigation into the mass killings and deportations of Armenians during World War I.
Turkish leaders suggested that the two countries set up a joint commission of historians to determine whether the massacres carried out between 1915 and 1917 constituted genocide. Armenia, however, insisted it would continue to seek international recognition and condemnation of what it says was a deliberate attempt at exterminating an entire people....(more)

See also:

Armenians Mark 90th Anniversary Of Start Of Massacres

Armenia: Tragedy Remains On Europe’s Political Map

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