Turkey Slams German President's Comments On 1915 Events

Turkey's Foreign Ministry has criticized German President Joachim Gauck after he referred to the 1915 incidents as a "genocide".



The response from the ministry came in a statement on Friday a day after Gauck referred to the tragedy of a century ago as a "genocide" in remarks he made at a memorial service at the historical Berlin Cathedral. 



The ministry said in a statement his comments were "baseless allegations directed towards Turkish identity, history and society."



It added:  "Contrary to law and historical facts, President Gauck has not the right to attribute on the Turkish people a crime which they have not committed."



"It is expected from the authorities who represent social unity, integrity and harmony, to take the sensitivities of all the members of the society into consideration and express a more embracing approach."



The statement went on:  "In this sense, it is astonishing that President Gauck has also disregarded the opinions of hundreds of thousands of Turkish-German citizens whom he also represents."



"Turkish history and identity is an integral part of Turkish-German society. Members of this community will not remain silent against initiatives aimed at defaming their identity. Turkish nation will not forget and forgive President Gauck's statements."



German lawmakers from governing parties and the opposition submitted Friday draft parliamentary motions to parliament which labeled the incidents in 1915 as "genocide".



The statement added:  "We hope that Bundestag, which plans to discuss a resolution on the events of 1915 in the forthcoming days, takes a neutral and constructive stance and does not present an approach which would have long term negative repercussions on Turkish-German relations." 



The 1915 events took place during World War I when a portion of the Armenian population living in the Ottoman Empire sided with the invading Russians and revolted.



Turkey has called for the establishment of a joint commission of historians and the opening of archives to study and uncover what happened between the Ottoman Empire and its Armenian citizens.



The relocation by the Ottomans of Armenians in eastern Anatolia following the revolts resulted in numerous casualties.



Turkey does not dispute that there were casualties on both sides, but rejects the definition of "genocide".



www.aa.com.tr/en - Ankara