ADL: We would support U.S. recognition of the Armenian Genocide

May 14, 2016 By administrator

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The Anti-Defamation League (ADL) CEO has called on the U.S. government to recognize the Armenian Genocide.

“What happened to the Armenian people was unequivocally genocide,” Jonathan Greenblatt said in a statement. “The genocide began with the ruling government arresting and executing several hundred Armenian intellectuals. After that, Armenian families were removed from their homes and sent on death marches. The Armenian people were subjected to deportation, expropriation, abduction, torture, massacre and starvation.”

Mr. Greenblatt said it is important to educate each generation about the tragedies of the past.

“That is why I am speaking out today and why we would support U.S. recognition of the Armenian Genocide. Silence is not an option,” he emphasized.

“Collectively, this background makes it imperative for groups who, sadly, share a history of oppression to stand together. When individuals or groups deny the Armenian genocide, as recently took place with a billboard in Boston, ADL will speak out and denounce that denial. In that spirit, I am optimistic about greater cooperation going forward to end all forms of hate and bigotry,” he resumed.

It is time for international recognition of Nagorno-Karabakh – Karen Mirzoyan

May 13, 2016 By administrator

Armenia and Nagorno-Karabakh can cope with all the difficulties by combined effort, Foreign Minister of the Nagorno-Karabakh Republic (NKR) Karen Mirzoyan told Tert.am.

As to a possibility of Armenia recognizing Nagorno-Karabakh’s independence, he said:

“I would not say Armenia could be the only state to recognize Artsakh [Nagorno-Karabakh]. It is now time for international recognition of Artsakh. Not only Armenia, but the international community must recognize Artsakh. It will be the best security guarantee for Artsakh.”

As to Azerbaijan’s threats to unleash war if Armenia recognizes Nagorno-Karabakh, Mr Mirzoyan said:

“Azerbaijan’s leadership is issuing numerous threats in any case. We must curb its ambitions by all possible means.”

Azerbaijan Sees Red: Bill in Armenia on NKR recognition draws Baku’s wrath

May 7, 2016 By administrator

free-artsakh-welcomes-you_0_2_0 By Naira Hayrumyan,

In a move that has been condemned as a “provocation” by Azerbaijan, the government of Armenia on May 5 is going to discuss and provide its conclusion on a bill dealing with the formal recognition of the Nagorno-Karabakh Republic’s (NKR) independence.

After the government’s opinion the bill authored by opposition MPs Zaruhi Postanjyan and Hrant Bagratyan (ex-prime minister) will be debated in the country’s legislature where the final decision will be made.

Postanjyan is known to have repeatedly suggested recognizing the independence of the Nagorno-Karabakh Republic (NKR), but the bill would not become law due to the position of the executive and the parliament majority that a formal recognition of the NKR would mean withdrawing from internationally mediated talks with Azerbaijan on the conflict settlement and could trigger renewed hostilities. In the current conditions following the April 2-5 war in Nagorno-Karabakh and continuing tensions in the conflict zone, however, some experts do not rule out certain progress of the bill.

Meanwhile, the bill proposed in Armenia has raised hysteria in Azerbaijan where deputy chief of President Ilham Aliyev’s administration Novruz Mammadov described it as “another provocation of the Armenian leadership” aimed at “preserving the status quo.”

Meanwhile, the Armenian side does not hide that the bill is intended to play a constraining role in the prevention of a new possible aggression by Azerbaijan.

“If Azerbaijan starts a new military aggression, the issue of the recognition of Nagorno-Karabakh will be included in the agenda,” Armenia’s Deputy Foreign Minister Shavarsh Kocharyan said.

Asked whether it was true that the Armenian government was ready to endorse the bill on the recognition of the NKR at its upcoming meeting, the senior diplomat said: “According to the conclusion of the government, the recognition would be due to the further development of the situation.”

Vladimir Hakobyan, a spokesman for the Armenian president, said, meanwhile, that Armenia is closely following the “delusional statements of Azerbaijani officials, which are not only surprising, but also ridiculous”. He reminded that the bill was presented by opposition MPs. “Let there be no doubt that in the event of recognition of the Nagorno-Karabakh Republic, the public will learn about it first from President Serzh Sargsyan,” the presidential press secretary said.

In his turn, Chairman of the NKR Public Council on Foreign Policy and Security, former Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs of the NKR Masis Mailyan said: “Armenia must recognize the Nagorno-Karabakh Republic. Now the situation has changed. And politicians have revised their approaches. Earlier in Yerevan they thought such recognition could lead to a war or disruption of the peace process. But life has shown that even without this recognition Azerbaijan started the war and actually torpedoed the negotiation process, as well as violated the ceasefire agreement of 1994.” Now, the diplomat added, there will no longer be any fears on this matter, and Armenia must take more drastic steps.

That Armenia may recognize the NKR and conclude with it an agreement on mutual military assistance was first stated during the April war by President Sargsyan. He said that if Azerbaijan continues aggression, Armenia will make a move to formally recognize the NKR’s independence.

So far, Armenia has refrained from formally recognizing the NKR because of its participation in negotiations under the auspices of the OSCE Minsk Group. As part of these negotiations, the parties have been discussing the so-called Madrid principles, which also imply territorial concessions. And when the question of recognition was raised, many Armenian politicians would wonder whether the recognition should take place within the current NKR borders (with territories gained during the 1992-1994 war) or within the limits of the autonomous region that existed during the Soviet times. If the recognition takes place within today’s borders, then the negotiations and the Madrid principles can be regarded as finished.

The Armenian genocide: Glendale celebrates a small step in the fight for recognition

April 23, 2016 By administrator

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Jake Svadjian gets a lift from his father, Jack Svadjian, during last year’s march in L.A. to remember the Armenian genocide. (Al Seib / Los Angeles Times)

By Sarah Parvini,

Taline Arsenian walked through the doors of her Glendale middle school classroom 16 years ago expecting to teach her usual math class of 35 students.

When the bell rang, she saw nearly half of the class was absent. Then she remembered the date: April 24, a day observed in recognition of the Armenian genocide.

As the years went by, more students, both Armenians and non-Armenians, began missing school on that date.

Arsenian’s family came from an Armenian village that is now part of Turkey. Her grandparents were survivors of an event that left more than 1 million Armenians dead. As a teenager, she shared a bedroom with her grandmother, who told her stories of how her ancestors were deported and her homeland was taken over. And for decades, Armenians struggled for recognition around the globe that a genocide had been perpetrated against their people.

“It hits very close to home,” said Arsenian, 49. “When you hear that denial and it’s part of your family tree, it’s very personal. All I have to do is follow my family tree to see it’s interrupted by genocide.”

All I have to do is follow my family tree to see it’s interrupted by genocide. — Taline Arsenian, middle school teacher

This year, Glendale Unified became the first school district in the country to establish a day in remembrance of the genocide, which began in 1915 and resulted in the death of 1.5 million Armenians at the hands of the Ottoman Turks. Schools will now close on any weekday when it’s April 24 in memory of the Armenian genocide.

Southern California is home to the largest Armenian community outside of Armenia, and Glendale has long been seen as a kind of Armenian cultural mecca. People of Armenian descent make up about 40% of Glendale’s 210,000 residents. The city remains a point of entry for Armenian immigrants and each year, as April 24 approaches, locals drape Armenian flags over the hoods of their cars, wave them from their car windows and hang them from their businesses. Most stores post signs in both English and Armenian telling customers they will be closed in remembrance of the genocide.

Establishing the holiday in the schools is part of a larger effort in the heavily Armenian city to keep the memory of the genocide alive at a time when few survivors remain. Armenian Americans are hoping to make progress on the local level after losing an emotional bid last year to have the U.S. government officially recognize the genocide.

More than 20 countries have recognized the genocide, according to a list maintained by the Armenian National Institute. President Obama has not called the massacre a “genocide” since he took office, despite campaign trail promises to do so and heavy lobbying by the Armenian community. Administration officials have said Obama made a necessary decision, crucial to the U.S. alliance with Turkey. Despite this, more than 40 states.

— including California — have recognized the genocide, according to the institute.

As ethnic Armenians worldwide mark the 101st anniversary of the genocide, Glendale’s Armenians are celebrating the school district’s decision as a small step in the decades-long battle for recognition. Since the 2013-2014 school year, students and teachers in Glendale have been given the day off on April 24, an unofficial acknowledgment that so many would be out anyway.

“Glendale has been my home for 25 years, and to know that an elected body in my city has acknowledged an Armenian Genocide Remembrance Day is very significant,” Arsenian said.

Glendale Unified school board member Greg Krikorian said that when he was growing up in Hartford, Conn., people would ask him who the Armenian people were. They hadn’t heard of Armenia, let alone the genocide.

“It brings relevance to it,” said Krikorian, whose grandparents became orphans after the killings. “It is a victory if we can educate more students and children and faculty on what really happened.”

He added: “My personal family is very small because of what the Ottoman Turks did.”

Armenians regard the tragedy that took place in 1915 as part of an organized, orchestrated effort by the Ottoman Turkish government. Historians have characterized what happened as a precursor of — and even a model for — genocides that followed, including Adolf Hitler’s systematic slaughter of European Jews and other groups decades later.

Turkey disputes that a genocide happened, but other countries, including Canada, France and Italy, use the term. In recent years, the Armenian community’s goal has shifted from mere recognition to a call for reparations.

Outside Glendale High School on Friday morning, many Armenian American students wore shirts commemorating the genocide that read: “Our wounds are still open. 1915.”

Arpi Badlians’ father was born in Armenia, she said, and he taught her to stand in solidarity with the community at an early age. She said she’s been marching in remembrance rallies since she was 10. The 17-year-old said she’s grateful for the district’s decision to commemorate the day on the calendar.

Bundestag to hold another discussion on Genocide recognition in June

April 13, 2016 By administrator

210151 The resolution “Recognizing the events of 1915 as Genocide” is set to once again be discussed in the German Bundestag, most probably in June, Aravot reports citing Haberler.

The resolution was introduced to the parliament by co-chairman of the German political party Alliance ’90/The Greens Cem Ozdemir, who recently commented on the bill.

“Reaching a common stance by all the parties is far more important than the dates,” Ozdemir said.

“The Bundestag will finally employ simple and precise formulations. The crime perpetrated against the Armenians at the hands of the Ottoman Empire can only be characterized as genocide. Moreover, Germans too have their share of responsibility.”

USA: Georgia State House passes Karabakh recognition resolution

March 3, 2016 By administrator

207400 The Georgia State House adopted the resolution “Honoring and Recognizing the Nagorno Karabakh Republic” on Thursday, March 3, Armenian National Committee of Georgia reports.

Representatives Pat Gardner and Demetrius Douglas were the main sponsors of the document.

The ANC of Georgia will provide further details later.

In late August 2015, the California State Senate, led by incoming Senate President Pro Tem Kevin De Leon, by an overwhelming majority of votes passed Assembly member Mike Gatto’s resolution, encouraging Artsakh’s (Nagorno Karabakh) continuing efforts to develop as a free and independent nation and formally calling upon the President and Congress of the United States to support the self-determination and democratic independence of the Nagorno Karabakh Republic.

FM Nalbandyan: Armenian Genocide gained worldwide recognition

February 2, 2016 By administrator

f56b0b5e7d6d73_56b0b5e7d6db0.thumb “Strangely, it is not Armenia that sets preconditions for Armenian-Turkish normalization, but Turkey – the successor of the Ottoman Empire that committed genocide,” Armenian Foreign Minister Edward Nalbandyan told reporters today in response to a question about what should be expected amid Turkish FM’s claims that Armenian-Turkish relations would not be normalized without a settlement of the Karabakh conflict.

In his words, it would be strange to look for logic in recent rhetoric of Turkish diplomacy concerning not only Armenia-related issues, but other problems as well.

As regards the 100th anniversary of the Armenian Genocide and the question about whether commemorative events will be held at the same pace this year or the centennial was the reason for such large-scale commemorations, Nalbandyan noted that in 2015 the events were audible throughout the world.

“On the 50th anniversary of the Genocide, a dark page in our history, the tragedy was not much discussed outside Armenian circles. But now we can say that the Armenian Genocide has gained worldwide recognition thanks to common efforts that the Armenians have made during these years. Consistent work will not stop after the anniversary. We will continue consistent efforts with the Armenian people and the international community to achieve recognition and condemnation of the Armenian Genocide and prevent new genocides,” the minister said.

AGOS NEWSPAPER To question the official discourse is the way to recognition

May 17, 2015 By administrator

Raymond Kevorkian’s book “The Armenian Genocide”, a leading book in its field, was published in Turkish by the Iletisim publishing house. In addition to the genesis of this test, we talked with Raymond Kevorkian of Turkey’s policies towards the Genocide.

Last week we talked with his translator Ayşen Taşkent Ekmekçi the translation process and the significance of this book for society in Turkey. What is perhaps most remarkable in the book of Kevorkian, who insists on the stages of genocide since the late 19th century until the founding of the Republic of Turkey is that you’ll see various correspondence testimonies and detailed presentation of the places where the massacres took place, region by region, with the lists of perpetrators and victims of these massacres … In addition to the genesis of the book, we discussed with the policies of Kevorkian Turkey to the Genocide.

Can you tell us how the idea for this book came to you? How long have you spent to conduct the research and the drafting?

This kind of work always takes place over a long period. One must first master the subject and sources, and this is not always easy to achieve. The book’s structure is gradually taking shape. Overall, the preparation of this trial took place over more than twenty years. I started by studying the demographic situation of Armenians in the Ottoman Empire and their presence throughout the territory of the Ottoman Empire. This has been the publication of a book that was also published in Turkey there are three years (with Paul Paboudjian ‘1915 Oncesinde Osmanli Imparatortugu’nda Ermeniler [The Armenians in the Ottoman Empire on the eve of 1915], Aras Publishing House). Known aspects of the Genocide were also revealed it, such as “second phase” of the Genocide, that is to say the slow death of the deportees to concentration camps in Syria and Mesopotamia. However, I have decided to publish this book when I finally had access to exceptionally rich archives of the Armenian Patriarchate of Istanbul (preserved to the Patriarchate of Jerusalem). The study of these documents one by one took two years and I also spent two years writing the actual book.

What was your main motivation for writing a book so complete?

It was clear that the genocidal process had never been studied in depth. My first intention was, on the basis of previous studies on the Armenian presence in Anatolia, to make available to the public, especially to the one who originated or who lives there now a way to help them understand what happened in 1915. That is why I presented a geography of the region Genocide by region. Such micro-history was necessary to carry out this work. But isolating the event was clearly out of the question. I felt it was important to put the events in the Ottoman context. We had to find a balance between the presentation of the fate of the victims and of the intentions of the authors of the Genocide. In addition to the variety of available sources, it was essential to take into account the testimonies of survivors, but by submitting them to filter historical criticism.

What was the reaction in France when the book came out in 2006?

The public, including the Armenians of the second and third generation, has expressed an interest in this book to understand what had happened to their parents, or in other words, how and why they found themselves in France. The book answers questions that many posed to themselves. Historians have also shown interest in this test, which was the result of the work of a historian trained in the French school of historians. The book could also help to erase the remaining doubts in the mind of some historians, still prone Turcologists individuals to align with the official line, despite its dubious credibility, taking over the propaganda of history.

While you were doing your research, what were the differences that have most struck you, considering the regions in which took place on Genocide?

The most remarkable aspect, there’s no doubt, this is the level of planning that gave rhythm to the deportations, which essentially took place in just three months, from June to August 1915. While the methods employed for organizing the deportation convoys are almost identical, we note that in the case of families from Western Anatolia, the head of family was present; by cons, in the provinces of the east, a priority, obviously, for the Turkish authorities young, male adults were executed and the women and children deported without any protection.

What are the main players in the genocide, and what were the relations between them during the genocide?

As for the authors, the ten members of the Central Party of Union and Progress Committee are clearly the key-makers, planners, and are those that have implemented this act of mass violence. These characters, on one hand, had founded the Special Organization ‘Teşkilat Mahsusa-i), the main tool for the destruction of the Armenians to put their dirty work execution, while the other, they managed to involve their actions in local government, which would assume responsibility for compliance with the deportation program.

What does the publication of this book in Turkey important?

This is not the first book published in Turkey on Genocide. However, by its very structure, which not only aims to observe facts from Istanbul, the capital, but also from the provinces, I hope it will be of interest to people living in the affected provinces violence, since these events are part of local history or that of their own family. For each region, with the lists prepared by the Armenian Patriarchate of Constantinople, it is possible to give us the name of the key-characters involved: members of the local organization of Union and Progress, officials of commissions of abandoned goods (Emval- Metruke i) senior officials, police officers, police commissioners, the Special Organization officers (Teşkilat Mahsusa-i), etc., who participated at different levels in the extermination of the Armenian population. I doubt that the descendants of these people can remain indifferent on this subject. This test will probably help students and intellectuals readers to get an idea of the circumstances that gave rise to contemporary Turkey.

What is your assessment of Turkey’s policy on this subject since the founding of the Republic of Turkey?

Note first of all that there is an ideological extension of Union and Progress Committee. The Kemalist regime has managed to homogenize Anatolia demographically by using various methods including assassinations, expulsions, deportations and tax measures, aimed not only the Armenian Genocide survivors, but also the Greeks and Assyrians. Moreover, historians are aware that political and military leaders builders of modern Turkey were, to varying degrees, involved in the extermination of the Armenians, and gave birth to a singular political culture that continues to influence leaders. Under these conditions, the way for the recognition of this history of violence on which the Republic was founded, through the questioning of the principles of the new nation wanted by Turkish Youth and questions to ask themselves about what was done grandparents; or in short, as was the case with the Kurds for decades, to object to the modus operandi of the political machine which, again and again, stigmatizes and excludes all groups that do not flow in the mold of the identity imposed.

For all these reasons, I do not count on rapid transformation of the policy of the Turkish state. Perhaps the change does come from civil society, victim himself, somehow, politics of the state.

“The official denial, although slightly more diplomatic, continuous”

2007, the year of the murder of Hrant Dink, a milestone for Turkish-Armenian. What do you think of the years that followed?

Hrant Dink long and hard about how to get out of the death trap of stigma to a specific community. His statements, as we know, everyone has sometimes provoked strong reactions in the Armenian community, but they have undoubtedly contributed to the maturation of the concept of dialogue – the term reconciliation appears inappropriate for now. His murder and the reactions that followed undoubtedly forced the most radical circles to silence and many friends decided to get more involved in the fight for memory, for a change of the ideology that still permeates deeply Turkey and its state apparatus. Since then, a positive dialogue has emerged in some segments of the Armenian and Turkish civil societies. Obviously, a huge amount of work remains to be done to inform the public and assist in the dissemination of critical views, to convince the public that this process leads to a democratic future for Turkey.

How do you rate the state policy towards the Armenian Genocide from 2006 to today?

Since the entry of Turkey in the accession negotiations to the European Union, it is undeniable that the recognition of the Armenian Genocide has become, even if it is not explicitly written in any document, an essential political condition for the possible integration of Turkey into the EU. The authorities know this very well and have taken some initiatives to create a better image of the country: the restoration of Akhtamar, whose name was Turkified and whose church is topped by a huge Turkish flag, the proposal of the creation of a commission of historians, or rather propagandists that are expected to discuss a topic they have no comprehensive knowledge, are examples. It is believed that some Turkish authorities are considering the next concession to make. An eventual step back from the state directly depend on the pressure exerted by civil society in Turkey, and also from the outside.

What are the differences and similarities in government policy between 1915 and today in the light of current events in the Middle East?

As I said earlier, there is a continuity in the ideological apparatus of the state. Violent practices, the lack of political dialogue, a stubborn refusal to accept the difference of those whose identities other than the official identity complicate the solution of an issue as the Kurdish question. We are now seeing for several months the ambiguous position of the Turkish authorities towards the IE. The main reason, at least for observers who know the area, is that for Turkey, the Kurdish question overcomes priority threats posed by the EI for the Middle East as a whole. We return every time this ideology of exclusion that exists since 1915; a dangerous nationalism that diplomacy strives to compensate.

Maral Dink

05/04/2015

http://www.agos.com.tr/en/article/11166/questioning-official-discourse-is-the-path-to-recognition

Translation Gilbert Béguian

Recognition of the Armenian genocide: how celebrities were on the forefront

May 9, 2015 By administrator

System of A Down, Kim Kardashian, Amal Clooney … As the world commemorates the centenary of the first genocide of the twentieth century, the Armenian Diaspora mobilizes its forces media to raise public awareness.

The American hip-hop star Kanye West jumping into a lake during a surprise concert. His wife, the more people that Kim Kardashian, creating a riot on social networks and posting on his Instagram account:

“Thousands of people were there! Kanye jumped into the lake to get closer to the crowd stationed on the other side and full of people then also jumped! It was such a crazy and exciting night! “

The scene could have taken place almost naturally in New York, London or Paris. She has performed in Yerevan, capital of Armenia, a small country of 3 million people wedged between Turkey, Iran, Azerbaijan and Georgia. The Kardashian family, consisting of Kim, Khloe’s sister, husband and their daughter Kanye North, organized a surprise trip to Armenia memory. The occasion of a meeting with Armenian Prime Minister Hovik Abrahamian, before taking off for Jerusalem and their children baptized in an Armenian cathedral. Kim Kardashian, reality TV producer, born in Los Angeles in 1980, is indeed the daughter of Robert Kardashian, American lawyer and descendant of the deported Armenian genocide of 1915.

Turkish columnist: Genocide recognitions further isolate Turkey

April 26, 2015 By administrator

By SERKAN DEMİRTAŞ

In a comprehensive interview with daily Hürriyet’s Cansu Çamlıbel on April 24, Armenian President Serzh Sargsyan underlined in an open way that Armenia’s “struggle does not end in 2015 – it will just enter a more mature phase.”

“Let us not forget that we have had an opportunity to raise the issue of the Armenian Genocide and condemn it only after the declaration of independence of the third Republic of Armenia. And that means that our struggle has just started. And it will be more coordinated and purposeful in the upcoming years,” he told Hürriyet on the occasion of the centennial commemoration of the mass killings of his ancestors at the hands of the Ottoman Empire.

A years-long vigorous and aggressive campaign by the Armenian state and the Armenian diaspora to get the genocide recognized by more countries yielded important results in 2015. Pope Francis kicked off the flare by describing the 1915 incidents as genocide, in an obvious message delivered to the entire Catholic World. The European Parliament, the Austrian Parliament, German President Joachim Gauck and Russian President Vladimir Putin among many others lined up to express the “G-word,” at the expense of drawing Turkey’s reaction. The Russian Duma and the German Bundestag were still debating over resolutions for the recognition of the genocide late afternoon on April 24 when this column was being written.

U.S. President Barack Obama preferred to avoid using “genocide” to describe the 1915 incidents, but it should not be forgotten that he still has nearly two years left in office and that he may find another opportunity to call this atrocity a genocide. It should be well understood that Obama did not refrain from using this word because of the potential Turkish reaction but because of existing interests of his country. From now until the end of his mandate, Obama could announce that he describes the 1915 incidents as genocide either verbally or through a statement.

This overall picture tells so many things at the same time. First of all, it has been revealed that Turkey failed to counter the Armenian campaign diplomatically, politically and scientifically. Turkey’s sole strategy was to move the centennial commemoration of the Gallipoli Battle to April 24 in a move to distract attention from Yerevan.

Turkey’s weak and outdated campaign has produced nothing but more anti-Western rhetoric, which pushed more countries to recognize the genocide.

Turkey has withdrawn ambassadors from Austria and the Vatican and likely will from Germany and Russia as well if these countries’ parliaments recognize the genocide. With the European Parliament already voting in favor of a similar resolution, it would not be a surprise to observe another cold era in Ankara’s ties with the EU. Most EU countries are now listed among countries that have labeled the 1915 incidents as genocide and this would create more obstacles in front of Turkey’s full membership negotiations with Brussels. If this situation worsens, the risk of the EU putting the recognition of genocide as a condition before full Turkish membership will grow.

On the Russian front, the situation is no less complicated. Putin’s statement on the occasion of the 1915 incidents was not expected to be that strong given the deepening economic and energy cooperation between Ankara and Moscow. In a recent visit to Kazakhstan, President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan went so far that he has shown interest in partnership with the Russia-led Eurasian Economic Union, an international organization composed of Russia, Kazakhstan, Belarus and Armenia. It seems Erdoğan is in a full political abyss, as he forgets that it was Putin’s ambition to increase his influence in the region by keeping NATO and the EU out of its area of dominance that kicked off the Ukraine crisis and the annexation of Crimea by Russia.

The scope and tone of the Turkish reaction against Russia will provide evidence on whether Erdoğan will continue his inconsistency in dealing with Turkey’s northern neighbor. One of the most important indicators would perhaps be the future of the Turkish Stream, a pipeline that would carry Russian gas to Europe via Turkey.

This year’s struggle between Turkey and Armenia also reduces the chances for a breakthrough on the Nagorno-Karabakh problem between Armenia and Azerbaijan. Turkish Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoğlu criticized the Russian and French presidents for attending the centennial commemoration ceremonies in Yerevan but he preferred to highlight their role in the Minsk Group, set by three co-chairs, France, Russia and the U.S., to resolve the Nagorno-Karabakh problem.

“Russia’s and France’s presence in Yerevan casts a shadow over the impartiality of the Minsk Group as well. Necessary diplomatic initiatives are being taken about them too,” Davutoğlu said. Instead of issuing a direct criticism on Putin and French President Francois Hollande, Davutoğlu preferred to reflect it on the Nagorno-Karabakh issue, implying that the breakthrough on this already frozen conflict will be more difficult.

To make the long story short, this campaign being carried out by Armenia has put Turkey’s image abroad into a more difficult state and put Turkey’s ties with the Western world into dire straits that can cause more isolation.

April/25/2015