Turkish Foreign Ministry denounces Biden’s statement over 1915 events

By Trend

Turkey denounced statements of the U.S. President Joe Biden regarding the 1915 events in the "strongest terms" Saturday, Trend reports citing Daily Sabah.

“It is clear that the said statement does not have a scholarly and legal basis, nor is it supported by any evidence. With regards to the events of 1915, none of the conditions required for the use of the term ‘genocide’ that is strictly defined in international law are met,” Foreign Ministry said in a statement.

It noted that the nature of 1915 events doesn’t change according to the current political motives of the politicians or domestic political considerations.

The statement added that the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR) confirmed the controversial nature of the 1915 events, adding that Turkey proposed in 2005 to Armenian side to establish a joint history commission in order to reach a just conclusion in light of historical facts of that period.

“Although Armenia has never responded to this proposal, it is still on the table. In this respect, the statement made by the President of the US, who is neither legally nor morally authorized to judge historical matters, has no value,” it said.

The Foreign Ministry also said that the U.S. statement will open a “deep wound that undermines our mutual trust and friendship.”

“We call on the US President to correct this grave mistake, which serves no purpose other than to satisfy certain political circles and to support the efforts aiming to establish a practice of peaceful coexistence in the region, especially among the Turkish and Armenian nations, instead of serving the agenda of those circles that try to foment enmity from history,” it said.

US President Joseph Biden called the events of 1915 in the Ottoman Empire “genocide" in his statement of Apr. 24.

Armenia and the Armenian lobby claim that Turkey's predecessor, the Ottoman Empire, allegedly carried out so-called "genocide" against the Armenians living in Anatolia in 1915.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan stated previously that there was no genocide against Armenians in the history of Turkey and the events of 1915 need investigation.

Turkey called on Armenia to open the archives of 1915 and create a joint commission to investigate the events. But Armenia has not yet responded to Turkey's proposal.