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  • Admiral Mullen Discusses Critical Military Engagement in Turkey

    Admiral Mullen Discusses Critical Military Engagement in Turkey

    Admiral Mullen Discusses Critical Military Engagement in Turkey

    Publication: Eurasia Daily Monitor Volume: 7 Issue: 160

    September 8, 2010

    By Saban Kardas

    Admiral Mike Mullen, the Chairman of the US Joint Chiefs of Staff, visited Turkey last week. Although the official purpose of Mullen’s visit was to congratulate his Turkish counterpart General Isik Kosaner, recently appointed as the Chief of the General Staff, this introductory visit had no fixed agenda. Mullen had a chance to gauge Turkey’s position on many of US policies in the surrounding regions. In his meetings with Turkish military and civilian leaders, Mullen exchanged opinions on US withdrawal from Iraq, the Iranian nuclear issue and the international military presence in Afghanistan, as well as reiterating US support for Turkey on various issues such as its struggle against the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) and sales of military equipment for the Turkish armed forces (Hurriyet, Cumhuriyet, Radikal, September 5).

    On the issue of Iran, Mullen downplayed recent disagreements, arguing that both Turkey and the US share the common objective of preventing Iran from acquiring a nuclear weapons capability. However, as Ankara’s earlier diplomacy on the Iranian nuclear standoff attested, such blanket mutual understanding was not enough to eliminate major differences of opinion over how best to deal with Iran (EDM, June 1). Ankara’s objections to a tougher US position and insistence on a diplomatic solution culminated in Turkey’s vote against a US-brokered UN Security Council resolution authorizing a new round of sanctions in June. Coupled with other crises, such as the problems encountered in Turkish-Israeli relations, this development further strained bilateral relations, prompting many US politicians and interest groups to question the strategic partnership with Turkey. In this tense environment, in August the Republicans blocked President Barack Obama’s nominee for the next Ambassador to Turkey, Frank Ricciardione. The vacant post highlighted how tenuous Obama’s Turkey policy remained, as well as the impact of Ankara’s recent policies on US domestic politics.

    While for Washington a combination of diplomatic efforts and punitive sanctions is needed to deal with Iran, Ankara still believes that constructive diplomacy must be prioritized. Earlier in August, Mullen had raised tensions in the region, following his statement that military options against Iran remain on the table, which invited a harsh reaction from Iran, placing Turkey in a difficult diplomatic position (AFP, August 3).

    In this context, Mullen adopted a rather balanced tone in Ankara and said that he had no plan to question Turkey over the Security Council vote and emphasized that he welcomed Turkish leaders’ statements that they would comply with UN sanctions against Iran. Nonetheless, this last point underscored continued differences over Iran. The Turkish government has reiterated on many occasions that it would implement only sanctions authorized by the UN, not the stricter set of measures being introduced by the US and the European countries.

    Mullen also referred to ongoing discussions within NATO pertaining to the formation of a missile defense system against Iran, which will be part of the agenda of the upcoming NATO summit in November. Turkey is one of the possible locations for radars and interceptors. However, the Turkish position on this issue remains unclear, and it is unlikely to welcome such a proposal considering Ankara’s sensitivity to Tehran’s concerns.

    Turkey’s contribution to the international military effort in Afghanistan was also discussed. Praising Turkey’s critical role in ensuring Afghanistan’s security through its provision of troops and training to Afghan security personnel, Mullen requested that Turkey maintains its military contribution after its command over international troops in Kabul and the surrounding area expires in October. Turkey has contributed to the NATO-led International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) since its inception immediately after the US invasion of the country in 2001, and has assumed the command of ISAF on many occasions. Although the US has pressured Turkey to increase its troop levels, Ankara has refused to do so, on the grounds that non-military means should be used to address the root causes of the conflict. Washington has come to acknowledge Ankara’s concerns on this issue, but wants to ensure that Turkey maintains at least its current level of commitment to ISAF.

    An additional area discussed during the bilateral talks was Turkey’s specific role in US withdrawal plans from Iraq. Ever since the Obama administration announced its withdrawal plans, there has been speculation that Turkey would serve as one of the exit routes for US troops and military equipment (EDM, March 9, 2009). Denying such reports, Mullen stressed that he was not in Ankara to negotiate the terms of the US military exit from Iraq through Turkey. Since the transfer of military units will require authorization from the Turkish parliament, it is unlikely that Washington will seriously consider this option. Indeed, a recent statement from the Turkish foreign ministry also ruled out such an option, though welcoming the possibility of moving non-combat elements through the country. If an agreement is reached, Turkey would be ready to create a safe zone for the transfer of technical equipment (Sabah, September 3).

    The visit by Mullen underscores the extent to which US-Turkish relations are characterized by military-strategic issues, and how the United States needs Turkey’s cooperation at best and at the very least its acquiescence for the successful execution of its military engagements in the regions surrounding Turkey. Therefore, Turkey is a key part of discussions on major US military campaigns, which serves as a constraint on Washington and prevents it from severing ties with this critical ally over its independent policies. Turkey, in contrast, relies on US assistance and the transfer of military technology, which curbs any tendency on its part to pursue unilateral policies. Aware of this mutual interdependence in military-security affairs, civilian and military bureaucrats from both sides have intensified their efforts to maintain the pace of cooperation. Recently, Turkish foreign ministry officials visited Washington to reiterate Ankara’s determination to maintain strategic ties with the US. This message will perhaps be repeated during the visit to the US later this month by Turkish President, Abdullah Gul, and Foreign Minister, Ahmet Davutoglu, as part of the UN General Assembly.

    https://jamestown.org/program/admiral-mullen-discusses-critical-military-engagement-in-turkey/

  • Top Three Armenian Church Leaders Boycott Turkish Show in Akhtamar

    Top Three Armenian Church Leaders Boycott Turkish Show in Akhtamar

    By Harut Sassounian

    Publisher, The California Courier

    The Turkish scheme of luring Armenian Church leaders to participate in a religious show at Holy Cross (Sourp Khach) Church on Akhtamar Island, Lake Van, backfired last week.

    The heads of three Hierarchical Sees of the Armenian Church — in Armenia, Lebanon, and Jerusalem — will neither attend nor send representatives to the celebration of Divine Liturgy at Holy Cross Church on September 19. All three turned down the invitation of Archbishop Aram Ateshyan, Deputy Patriarch of the Armenian Patriarchate of Turkey.

    Catholicos Aram I of Cilicia, headquartered in Antelias, Lebanon, was the first to announce that he would boycott the Sept. 19 ceremonies. In this regard, the Catholicosate announced: “In an attempt to convince the European Union and UNESCO that Turkey safeguards the cultural heritage of its occupied lands, the Turkish government restored the Holy Cross Armenian Church, but instead of keeping it as a church, transformed it into a museum.” It described the ceremonies orchestrated by Turkey as “an attempt to obscure its consistent policy of denying the Armenian Genocide and the rights of its survivors.”

    The Holy See of Etchmiadzin, on the other hand, had initially announced that it would send to Akhtamar two high-ranking clergymen. In an earlier column, this writer had expressed the wish that Karekin II, Catholicos of All Armenians, would reconsider his decision. Last week, after the Turkish government broke its promise to place a cross atop the Holy Cross Church, the Catholicos, as expected, withdrew Etchmiadzin’s participation from the Sept. 19 ceremonies.

    The third Hierarchical See, the Armenian Patriarchate of Jerusalem, had initially decided to dispatch to Akhtamar Archbishop Aris Shirvanian, Director of Ecumenical and Foreign Affairs and Chairman of the Patriarchate’s Holy Synod. When questioned about his planned attendance, Archbishop Shirvanian told this writer on Sept. 5 that in line with the decision of Holy Etchmiadzin, he would not participate in the church service, because of Turkey’s refusal to install a cross on the dome of the Holy Cross Church.

    All three church leaders now have a unified position on this issue. They are to be commended for their decision not to support a political show sponsored by the Turkish regime, under the guise of a religious ceremony!

    Regrettably, the Armenian Patriarchate of Turkey, the fourth Hierarchical See of the Armenian Church, is still planning to participate in the Sept. 19 show, despite the fact that the Turkish government lied to Deputy Patriarch Aram Ateshyan, and refused to restore the promised cross on the church’s dome. The Governor of Van made the ridiculous claim that the Turkish state did not have the technical means to lift the 400 lb. cross to the top of the church. All those who bought airline tickets and booked hotel rooms, misled by Turkey’s false promises, should promptly cancel their trip, demand a refund and an apology from Turkish authorities for their deceptive bait and switch tactics!

    Even though Archbishop Ateshyan is a hostage of the Turkish regime and therefore does not have the freedom to take independent decisions, he risks losing all credibility with Armenians worldwide and all three Hierarchical Sees, should he go ahead and celebrate Mass in what Turkish officials describe as the “Akdamar Memorial Museum!” He should threaten not to show up at the Holy Cross Church on Sept. 19, unless Ankara installs the promised cross. Turkish officials would have to take his threat seriously, because without him there would be no religious ceremony. His absence would turn Turkey’s expected propaganda coup into a public relations nightmare!

    The last important actor in the Sept. 19 “extravaganza” is the Armenian government. While large segments of the public in Armenia have reacted strongly against Ankara’s once a year church service in the Holy Cross “museum,” little has been heard from Yerevan officials on this subject. Last month, the Armenian Foreign Ministry announced that it has not received an official invitation from Turkey. It is generally assumed that Armenian officials would refuse to participate in such a scandalous show, particularly after Ankara tricked Armenia’s leaders into signing the Armenia-Turkey Protocols, without any intention to ratify them.

    Just as the Turkish government inadvertently protected Armenia’s interests by refusing to ratify the Protocols, this time around, Ankara is causing Armenians to refrain from participating in this charade by breaking its promise to place a cross atop the Holy Cross Church!

  • Congress Should Investigate State Dept. For Holding Back Aid to Artsakh

    Congress Should Investigate State Dept. For Holding Back Aid to Artsakh

    By Harut Sassounian
    Publisher, The California Courier
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    The State Department has acted negligently and possibly in contempt of Congress by withholding assistance that it had expressly allocated to Nagorno Karabagh (Artsakh) during the past 12 years.
    The Armenian National Committee of America (ANCA) revealed last week that the State Department only spent about half of the amount allocated by Congress to Artsakh. From 1998 to 2010, Congress appropriated to Artsakh $61 million, not including an additional amount estimated at $10 million, allocated during 2000-2002. U.S. government documents obtained by ANCA reveal that the State Dept. spent only $36 million on humanitarian aid to Artsakh in those dozen years.
    Successive Democratic and Republican administrations have attempted to block congressional efforts to provide aid to Artsakh, in order to appease Azerbaijan. Failing to prevent approval of such allocations, the State Dept. devised a clever ploy to obstruct the will of Congress — it spent only a portion of the funds intended for Artsakh. Azerbaijan had been insisting that any U.S. assistance to Artsakh be channeled through Baku. Despite objections from the administration and Azerbaijan, Congress has continued to allocate aid to Artsakh, and made it less restrictive; its 2010 allocation of $8 million is earmarked for “programs and activities in Nagorno Karabagh,” not exclusively for humanitarian projects.
    Throughout these dozen years, neither Armenia nor Artsakh, and apparently no one from the Armenian American community has complained to Congress about the State Dept.’s refusal to spend fully the allocated funds. Amazingly, after this shortfall was revealed by ANCA, a senior Artsakh official downplayed the failure to deliver the allocated aid. According to Radio Free Europe, Vahram Atanesian, Chairman of the Artsakh parliament’s foreign relations committee, excused the withholding of the aid by attributing it to Artsakh’s robust economic growth!
    While Armenians remained surprisingly quiet, Congress, starting in 2001, repeatedly urged the administration “to release, without further delay, the remainder of the $20 million in humanitarian assistance initially provided in the fiscal year 1998 Act.” Furthermore, the House of Representatives asked the Secretary of State to report back the amount of assistance provided by the United States to Artsakh within 15 days of the enactment of the aid bill. In 2004 and 2005, the Senate demanded that USAID present its plans for the disbursement of the allocated funds within 60 days after the enactment of the aid bill. Unfortunately, the Obama administration bears the lion’s share of the blame. During its first two years in office, it has held back $12 million or one-third of the funds not spent on Artsakh since 1998.
    Sen. Barbara Boxer had the opportunity to pursue this issue with Matthew Bryza, nominee for U.S. Ambassador to Azerbaijan, during his confirmation hearing before the Foreign Relations Committee on July 22. She wanted to know why only $4 million was spent out of the $16 million allocated for Artsakh in the past two years. In response to Bryza’s evasive answer, Sen. Boxer asked him to provide in writing “a detailed accounting on the disbursement of all U.S. assistance to Nagorno Karabagh for the past five years.” She pointedly inquired: “Why weren’t the full amounts allocated by Congress for Nagorno Karabagh in 2009 and 2010 spent?” Bryza, once again, did not provide an adequate response to the Senator’s questions.
    Consequently, Sen. Boxer asked the Foreign Relations Committee to postpone voting on Bryza’s confirmation, until the Senate returns from recess around mid-September. This would hopefully give Bryza the opportunity to prepare an honest accounting of why the aid from Washington did not fully reach Artsakh. The delay in his confirmation would also allow the Senate to check more thoroughly the issues raised regarding his background.
    Clearly, Bryza and his predecessors at the State Department had resorted to various tricks to frustrate the intent of Congress. They attempted to appease Azerbaijan by limiting and delaying the aid desperately needed in Artsakh.
    Armenian-Americans should now ask Congress to investigate the State Department’s failure to comply with the legislature’s mandate, by under-spending $35 million of the allocation to Artsakh, during the past 12 years.
    Should the investigation uncover misconduct by State Dept. officials, Armenian-Americans should then ask Congress to make a one-time allocation of $35 million to Artsakh, in compensation for the amount the U.S. government failed to spend, as required by law.
    The uproar caused by such a congressional investigation would hopefully make State Dept. officials more cautious in the future when handling the disbursement of funds intended for Artsakh!

  • Love Stories of Ararat Mountain and People

    Love Stories of Ararat Mountain and People

    On Friday morning, with my friend İsmail, we want to see some places especially Republic Square. First, we go to places near the square. We go to the building of another friend who is journalist, but learn that he is on holiday and trying to find another address in Moskovyan Street. In this street which is on the west of Opera Square, we will meet Shushan, our friend from Sobesednik Newspaper. After a long searching process, we find the address but learn that the building is closed. In Armenia, media companies gives up most of their work when summer season comes. Sitting in the park opposite the building I text a message to Shushan and get the answer immediately. We will meet in Abovyan Street at 21:00…

    Until that time, we want to see the amazing place Cascade, so deflect our way into Opera Square. When we go in front of Cascade, we see a giant structure like a pyramid from which you can see the whole Yerevan. In the entrance, there are a couple of sculptures placed on both sides. We visit the exhibition under the monument in which there are postmodern art works. A girl comes close to us and gives some information about the work we are looking at the moment. After that, opening a personal conversation, she asks us where we are from. When she learns that we are Turks, she smiles and says Turks are the people who are coming there least. The Lebanese Armenian girl with green eyes, is trying to share some things from the Armenian culture. She presents us some interesting anecdotes in the section in which there are lots of art works about the respected fruit, pomegranate. We become aware of the belief that a bride throws a pomegranate to the floor and she will have children in the number of pomegranate seeds, is also existent in Armenian culture. In the section where there are descriptions of Noah’s Arc and Agri – Ararat Mountain, it is mentioned that the mountain is the subject of a controversy. But the situation is the same for both sides: The mountain belongs to the all people who are sharing common lands.

    After leaving the museum, we start to go up to the peak of Cascade. The place where lovers meet, others make marriage proposal or some others make peace with each other, reminds people The Love Fountain in Rome. Cascade, which homes four or five gardens with pools, of course is the main center of attraction for lovers.

    On top of Cascade we sit to relieve our tiredness and want to see Agri – Ararat Mountain which shows coyness and be invisible. Yerevan is in love with Agri – Ararat. This is indispensible and has a great importance for Yerevan. But unluckily, Yerevan cannot see Agri – Ararat because of the blurred atmosphere during summer time and the clouds during the winter season. We think this is the bad luck of Yerevan and start to watch the view of the whole city from that point.

    The city, in general, shows a view in which the big cranes goes up to the sky, construction gains speed and new social and political ideas are reflected on the buildings.  In the life under Cascade, there is a struggle of people to keep up with the speed of life, but in the further scene there is Revan with its silence reflecting  history, just like a coy lover trying to say something.

    It is time for us to leave the peak and go down. The luxurious, showy buildings below inform us the quietude to have before being retired.

    While going to Abovyan, we see one more time how kind are the people. Whoever we ask the address, he tries to tell the address even if he does not know foreign language or even he brings us to address himself.

    While looking at the interesting works in front of the Moscafe and Moscow Cinema, we see in the further away the hotel where the Turks, who tell their observations in Yerevan to Turkish media, prefer to stay. The fact is undeniable: The people coming from Turkey stay either in Mariott or Golden Tulip and try to observe people from there !

    We think about eating pizza until we meet Shushan. When we go to pizza house and see Turkish dishes in menu, we are not surprised. On the walls, there are photos of Armenian cinema artists. The moment our orders come, Shushan and Mihran enter the pizza shop. After shaking hands as if we have known each other for a long time, we invite our friends to the table. I am trying to both eat the pizza and talk. But I do not like the taste of the pizza and start to drink my tomato juice. Our friends ask for permission for a better place and we accept it.

    We enter a book café. Ismail is sitting next to Shushan. But her boyfriend Mihran makes a request to sit near Şuşan. The conception of being with the person you love is also existent here.

    Shushan is a journalist. Mihran works in a private company as a computer engineer. During our conversation, Şuşan and Mihran make Turkish sentences and revive the environment. We tell them that the people in Armenia resemble the people living in Turkey cities Erzurum, Van, Malatya. Azerbaijani language becomes one of the subjects of our conversation. Armenia, having the opportunity to get closely acquainted with both countries, follows the countries’ policies closely. We mentioned many subjects from the similarities between languages to the common shares. During the conversation we talk about neither 1915 nor Karabakh conflict. New generation is more open-minded and supports the dialogue. They think that the problems can be solved with having mutual talk. I ask the current position of opponent communities, especially Tashnaks. Some groups from the opposite party blame the rulership for betraying government and create a common side for this. But the rulership attaches importance to the relations to be developed with Turkey. Political problems obstruct dialogues because there is a bleeding wound, Karabakh conflict.

    With Ismail, we direct our way into Republic Square with the aim of going Erebuni. When we get in machine (dolmush), our impressions and observations make us have new ideas. Dolmushes here have night and day recipe. 100 dram during the day, 200 dram at night… An indispensible method to make profit. Just as I am thinking how this method can be applied in Turkey, my phone rings. First person to call me in Yerevan ! The person calling is Diana to whom I have been introduced by my instructor in Ankara. With her fluent Turkish she says ‘’Welcome to Yerevan Mehmet. Do you need something? The place you stay in is comfortable?’’ When I say that everything is okay, we decide to meet next day in Diamond Café… (to be continued)

    Mehmet Fatih ÖZTARSU / Caspian Weekly

  • Complaint against Azerbaijan in European Court Could Have Grave Consequences

    Complaint against Azerbaijan in European Court Could Have Grave Consequences

    By Harut Sassounian
    Publisher, The California Courier
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    In recent years, Armenian-Americans have filed several lawsuits in U.S. courts against insurance companies, banks, and the Republic of Turkey, seeking compensation for losses stemming from the Genocide of 1915.
    For the first time, on September 15, the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) will hold a hearing on a complaint filed by an Armenian family against the Republic of Azerbaijan for damages suffered during the Karabagh (Artsakh) conflict. Remarkably, the ECHR will consider on the same day a similar complaint brought by several Azeris against the Republic of Armenia (Chiragov and others vs. Armenia).
    Minas Sargsyan, a former resident of Gulistan in the Shahumyan region, north of Artsakh, filed a complaint on August 11, 2006, regarding the destruction of his house and eviction from his property. Sargsyan stated in his complaint that someone else, presumably an Azeri, is now living in his house. Although Sargsyan passed away a year ago, his widow and two children are continuing to pursue the case. Due to a backlog, the ECHR normally takes several years before it hears a case. The Sargsyan family is represented before the Court by attorneys Narine Gasparyan and Knarik Ohanyan of Yerevan (members of the Legal Guide NGO), and well known human rights lawyer Prof. Philip Leach representing the European Human Rights Advocacy Center in London.
    The Shahumyan region is situated on the northern border of the former Nagorno-Karabagh Autonomous Oblast, as it was known in Soviet times. More than 80% of Shahumyan was inhabited by Armenians prior to the Artsakh conflict. In June 1992, when the Azerbaijani forces bombed Gulistan, Sargsyans’ two-storey house was destroyed. As a result, the entire population of the village fled fearing for their lives, according to the “Statement of Facts,” summarized by the ECHR.
    Sargsyan’s complaint is based on the following claims:
    1. The destruction of his house and eviction from his property constituted “a violation of his right to peaceful enjoyment of his possessions.”
    2. Infringement on his right to a private and family life and to his home because of his forced displacement and Azerbaijan’s continuing refusal to allow him access to his home and belongings.
    3. In view of the demolition or vandalism of several Armenian cemeteries in Azerbaijan, Sargsyan stated that he was unaware of the condition of the cemetery of his close relatives and that he was deprived of the possibility of visiting their graves, which he had done regularly in the past. The mere fact of knowing that the graves of his relatives were under the risk of being destroyed caused Sargsyan severe suffering and distress. The inability to visit the cemetery deprived him of spiritual communication with his deceased relatives, as visiting and maintaining his relatives’ graves was a religious duty that he fulfilled before his eviction.
    4. There are no effective remedies available to ethnic Armenians who were forced to leave their homes in Azerbaijan. Armenians who had sought to lodge complaints with relevant Azerbaijani authorities were unable to obtain any redress for the violation of their rights. Due to the unresolved status of the Artsakh conflict, there were practical difficulties and obstacles for gaining direct access to any remedies available in Azerbaijan.
    5. Sargsyan complained that he had been subjected to discrimination in Azerbaijan, based on his ethnic and religious affiliation. He submitted that only ethnic Armenians living in Azerbaijan had been targets of violence, pogroms, and attacks. The Government of Azerbaijan failed to investigate violence against Armenians and to provide redress for the illegal occupation of their properties and the destruction of Armenian cemeteries.
    This is the first Armenian complaint lodged with the ECHR for violations of property rights, among others, by the Republic of Azerbaijan. If successful, it will set an important precedent for claims by hundreds of thousands of Armenians who were forced to abandon their properties in Baku and other parts of Azerbaijan. Similarly, the Chiragov complaint lodged against Armenia could open the door for demands by hundreds of thousands of Azeris who left their homes during the Artsakh conflict. In contrast to the Armenian case, however, most Azeris left at their own free will and sold their properties prior to their departure.
    It cannot be a mere coincidence that the Armenian and Azeri complaints are set to be heard by the Grand Chamber of the ECHR on the same day. If the Court finds a violation of property rights in these two cases, and orders monetary compensation to the applicants, this would likely lead to many similar cases being filed in the future, which could have far-reaching consequences for the economies of Armenia and Azerbaijan, amounting to billions of dollars. Alternatively, the Court could mandate that both countries allow their respective citizens to return to their former homes, which could create new upheavals and security risks in the region. As members of the Council of Europe, Armenia and Azerbaijan are obligated to comply with the decision of the Court.
    Both hearings could be followed live on September 15, on the Court’s website: www.echr.coe.int/echr. The Azeri complaint will be broadcast at 9:15 a.m., while the Armenian one is set for 2:30 p.m. (French time).

  • Genocide Talks Which Are Directed By Foreign Sides

    Genocide Talks Which Are Directed By Foreign Sides

    We woke up late in the morning because we had got very tired the night before. The number of dreams we had seen for a couple of days increased dramatically. We were not yet fully relieved our tiredness. Until we met Karine at 13:00, we thought it is time to visit the internet world that we had neglected for a long time.

    The morning in Yerevan is clear and brilliant. We are trying to find an internet café in Erebuni. Internet access in the café that we had gone the day before was a bit problematic. Watermelon sellers on the road, grocery stores under apartments and children playing on the puddles remind us the scenes from our own country. There is a map suspended on bus station. In the map the regions such as New Arapkir (Yeni Arapkir), New Malatya (Yeni Malatya), New Zeytun (Yeni Zeytun), New Maras (Yeni Maraş) draw our attention. In the country, foreign representation is highly valued. Whichever embassy building you come close on road, its existence is informed kilometers before. Moreover, in city maps on the bus stations designed by telephone operator firm Orange, embassy buildings are indicated.

    We find a café on the road and sit there. After a while, the café owner turns the loud music and turns up sura in Koran. We are really surprised to experience such a situation. We wonder whether the café owner is Muslim. While going out of the café, we are again shocked to see the cross sign on his neck. The facilities that internet provides give interested people the opportunity to listen Koran suras and people are free to utilize this. Especially the Armenians who have lived in Syria are accustomed to this situation. While giving the internet pay, I accidentally take a Turk kurus out. The café owner says that that money is not valid there and I answered saying that is Turk money. With a smile on his face, he expresses his satisfaction: ‘’Welcome!…’’

    Today we are going to see Tsitsernakaberd which underlies the Turkish-Armenian crisis and the commemoration of 1915. At the request of my friend Ismail, we scheduled this plan to an earlier time. We get in a taxi and proceed to the monument.

    We have come to the monument. This monument is a place designed at one time conscientiously. The construction of the monument whose name means swallow nest started in 1966 to commemorate the 50. anniversary of 1915. 12 columns represent the 12 cities which Armenians migrated to from East Anatolia. The fire between the columns is designed in such a way that it never dies down. Under the monument there is a museum named as ‘’Genocide’’. Here, first we see ‘’1909 Adana Massacre’’ poster. There is an atmosphere created here to show as if Turkey, trying to cope with 31 March movement in 1909, stirred up the troubles in Adana. Our friend informs the officer the fact that we are Turks. With a look full of interest, he sends a translator to us. An attractive woman is trying to tell her national affairs to people who are members of the nation which carried out 1915 happenings to her own nation…

    In the museum, in which there are some materials from the posters of Abdulhamit to the ones of Mustafa Kemal who is introduced as dictator and the main responsible of the Pontus genocide, and from the photos of Armenian kids with Cemal Pasha who killed many bandits to provide Armenians with comfort and facilities, to the German descriptions of Talat Pasha who is told as a killer, the translator goes on telling their national affairs with a great desire.

    ‘’Our ex-lands…’’ says the woman. ‘’Maras, Malatya, Diyarbakir, Mus, Van…’’ On these lands, Young Turks saw every kind of massacre as legal and were mobilized to kill Armenians for a reason that they did not even know. And they were successful…

    The museum mirrors a humanitarian plight with the works of French and German painters and writers. Moreover, the book ‘’The Confession of a Good Turk’’ written by a Turk who have fled from Turkey to Germany is still on sale in this museum. The expression ‘’ To sacrifice 4 million souls’’ makes us realize how much affected are the people by the heavy propagandas. As understood from the sources there, these propagandas supported by European countries and Russia is arranged to use at anytime with the aim of creating a manageable power in Caucasia. I call this an externally-guide conversation because neither a Turk nor an Armenian has been able to form the basis for a meeting to discuss these issues. The main problem is the inability to discuss our own matters.

    We ask the translator whether England, France and Russia are responsible for this situation. She says: ‘’ They were the forces against the Ottoman Empire and by war’s nature, they were the enemies. The responsibility belonged to Turks.’’ ‘’And Germany?’’ we say, because most of the materials in this museum are originating from Germany.’’ Yes…’’ she says, ‘’ They are partially responsible. Moreover, did not they take the inspiration of the genocide carried out on Jews from Turks?’’

    After leaving the museum, we go on to see the monument. This monument is a place consisting of 12 columns and a fire that never dies down. With the blood and tears music played on the background, the environment here is rather gloomy. After a man with tears on his eyes leave the monument, we also go out to see the surrounding area of the monument. In the further park, there is a tree park consisting of trees which have been planted by the leaders around the world. The children of American ambassador Henry Morghenthau, who has a place on our minds with reporting against Turkey, have planted trees here.

    After a little talk, we go to Erebuni, feeling hungry find a restaurant and sit there. Our friend says the the women working there that we are Turks. The woman is surprised and says that until that time she has never had a Turkish customer. Being Turkish here causes a short-term shock among people and that’s all…

    We are looking at the menu to choose something to eat. As we go on looking, our astonishment increases because in menu there are the same dishes as in Turkey.

    We order chicken shish and ‘’tan’’( ayran) as a beverage. During the meal, we talk about the similarities between Turk and Armenian culture. In Armenian language, there are lots of Turkish word. But the fact that these words have come from Turkish are not widely known there. The words such as ‘’Yaban, meydan, chardak, charshaf, yahudi, hach’’ are used in the same meaning in both languages.

    When we say that in Armenian culture there are abduction of girls, coffee fortune-telling and asking for the girl in a marriage, Karine becomes both shocked and happy. The same fortune-telling conversations are also existent in their culture.

    Our friend asks why there are many claims in Turkey against Armenians. We emphasize the fact that the situation is not what is thought and political problems create social problems. The family of our friend accepted our request to see them. They say after two days we can go to their country house. After leaving the restaurant, we are going towards the motel. All the way, we talk about Yerevan and the similarities between our languages.

    I want to call some places with telephone. After telephone breaks down, the women working there goes and brings me another phone in a hurry. They are really warm and friendly people… (to be continued)

    Mehmet Fatih ÖZTARSU / Caspian Weekly

    Translated By : Yasemin Taşçı / Volunteer of TUIC