Baku, Azerbaijan, Oct. 29
By Rufiz Hafizoglu - Trend:
The Turkish diaspora is entrusted with great tasks in combating the claims concerning the so-called "Armenian genocide", Turkish ambassador to Azerbaijan Ismail Alper Coskun told Trend.
"One of the main causes of misunderstanding of history of both Turkey and Azerbaijan is the power of diasporas acting against Azerbaijan and the Turkic world in general in the Western countries," he said.
Coskun said that the claims about the so-called "genocide", put forward by Armenia and the Armenian lobby against Turkey, are not new. However, the Armenian lobby plans to act more efficiently to attract supporters in 2015.
"The campaign on demonizing Turkey, the country's history will not complete in 2015," he said. "The Armenians will not stop to put forward their claims."
He said that Armenia and the Armenian lobby are on the wrong way.
"They are trying to convince the entire world in the real events of 1915," he said. "This does not correspond to reality and prevents the creation of common future in the region."
The ambassador also said that the Armenian government and the Armenian lobby use this issue to assert themselves.
"Instead of providing its population with jobs, the Armenian government is trying to distract it and attract its attention to the centenary of the so-called "Armenian genocide"," he said.
The diplomat said that despite Armenia's attempts, there are no events in the history of Turkey and Azerbaijan that may blacken the past and cast a shadow on the countries' future.
The ambassador urged Armenians to read Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan's statement on the events of 1915, made during his post as prime minister.
Turkey advocates for a fair assessment of the events of that time alongside with the fact that the country is ready to stand up for its history, Erdogan said.
In addition, Turkey is a supporter of mutual understanding amid sufferings experienced by the sides at that time, because the country is committed to integration based on the principles of agreement and tolerance, not estrangement and hatred towards a common future.
"Turkey will not allow falsification of historical facts under any circumstances," he said. "Our archives are open for the investigation of the events of 1915. There are people who are under the influence in the parliaments of several countries of the world. They have never been to Turkey. They do not know the history of the country. However, they are ready to support Armenians' claims regarding the so-called "genocide". We will more expand the joint activity with Azerbaijan to investigate the historical facts."
Armenia and the Armenian lobby claim that Turkey's predecessor the Ottoman Empire allegedly carried out 'genocide' against the Armenians living in Anatolia in 1915.
While strengthening the efforts to promote the so-called "genocide" in the world, Armenians have achieved its recognition by the parliaments of some countries.
edited by CN
