Category: Armenian Question

“The great Turk is governing in peace twenty nations from different religions. Turks have taught to Christians how to be moderate in peace and gentle in victory.”Voltaire’s Philosophical Dictionary

Armenian Americans Divided Over Thaw With Turkey

Armenia — Foreign Minister Eduard Nalbandian meets with the leadership of the Armenian Assembly of America in New York.

01.10.2009

Emil Danielyan

The leading Armenian organizations in the United States expressed conflicting views on Armenia’s dramatic rapprochement with Turkey as President Serzh Sarkisian started on Thursday a week-long intercontinental visit aimed at addressing Diaspora concerns about the U.S.-backed process.

Sarkisian will spend the next few days touring major Armenian communities in France, the United States, Lebanon and Russia and discussing his conciliatory policy on Turkey with their prominent members. “I am not going in order to convince them, I am
going to listen to them and tell them what I think,” he told the presidential Public Council on Wednesday.

According to a statement issued by his office, Sarkisian will first meet in Paris on Friday with leaders of Armenian community leaders from France and other European nations. He will then proceed to New York for similar discussions with representatives of the larger and more influential Armenian-American community. Among invited to the meeting are leaders of a U.S. chapter of the Armenian Revolutionary Federation (Dashnaktsutyun), one of the most vocal critics of the Turkish-Armenian agreements announced on August 31.

In a statement issued on Wednesday, Dashnaktsutyun’s Central Committee in the eastern United States said it has accepted the invitation. “But, let us be clear: We will attend this meeting because we do not want to forgo an opportunity to voice our strong and uncompromising opposition to these dangerous protocols,” it said. “We will do so directly and forthrightly, letting the president know that the protocols he defends actually betray the national rights of the entire Armenian Nation: Armenia, the Armenian Diaspora, and Nagorno-Karabakh.”

The statement said Sarkisian’s charm offensive is “not only late but lacking in political and moral sincerity” as both Yerevan and Ankara have made clear that they will sign the two fence-mending protocols without any changes whatever the outcome of the ongoing debates in both countries. It also reiterated Dashnaktsutyun’s arguments against a deal which the nationalist party says will make it harder for the Diaspora to gain greater international recognition of the Armenian genocide. “The protocols will satisfy the articulated aims of today’s Turkish government to silence the enduring and still unanswered ‘Armenian Question,’” the statement said.

The Dashnaktsutyun-controlled Armenian National Committee of America (ANCA) is one of the two main Armenian groups that have for decades been lobbying the U.S. Congress to pass a formal genocide resolution. The other, more moderate group, the Armenian Assembly of America, has been far more supportive of the thaw in Armenia’s relations with its historical foe.

The Assembly joined on Thursday the Diaspora’s largest charity, the Armenian General Benevolent Union, as well as two U.S. dioceses of the Armenian Apostolic Church in issuing a statement that welcomed Sarkisian’s policy and the controversial agreements in particular. “The protocols announced on August 31st represent a marked change from the past,” they said. “Turkey has now publicly committed to establish normal relations without preconditions, and the process has yielded remarkable progress.”

“The path ahead will not be easy and will undoubtedly involve new twists and turns along the way. That makes it all the more important to understand that this is not the time to advance other agendas at the expense of Armenia’s future,” the statement added in a thinly veiled attack on Dashnaktsutyun. “At this critical moment, we believe that the President of Armenia deserves our support.”

The Dashnaktsutyun statement deplored such views, claiming that they are not shared by the majority of an estimated one million Americans of Armenian descent. “We consider it likely that — for whatever reason — this minority will continue to maintain that unjustified position,” it said.

https://www.azatutyun.am/a/1841372.html

October 1, 2009
Armenian FM Under Opposition Fire

Armenia – Foreign Minister Eduard Nalbandian speaks at parliamentary hearings on Armenian-Turkish relations, Yerevan, 01Oct, 2009

01.10.2009

Irina Hovannisian

Foreign Minister Eduard Nalbandian faced angry opposition criticism on Thursday as he explained and defended his government’s agreements with Turkey during special public hearings held in the Armenian parliament.

The hearings, featuring not only parliament members but extraparliamentary politicians, historians and pundits, were part of “internal political consultations” promised by the Armenian and Turkish governments. The opposition Armenian Revolutionary Federation (Dashnaktsutyun) and Zharangutyun (Heritage) parties used them for reaffirming their strong rejection of the agreements envisaging the normalization of Turkish-Armenian relations.

Nalbandian sought to disprove their “artificial” claims that Yerevan has effectively accepted long-standing Turkish preconditions for the establishment of diplomatic relations between the two states and reopening of their border.

“Are there any preconditions? No and once again no,” he said. “Are we casting doubt on the fact of the Armenian genocide? Are we hampering international recognition of the Armenian genocide? No and once again no.

“Is there a connection between the finalized documents and the Nagorno-Karabakh negotiating process? None and once again no.”

Armenia — Armen Rustamian, a leader of the opposition Armenian Revolutionary Federation, speaks during parliamentary hearings.

Dashnaktsutyun and Zharangutyun leaders were unconvinced by these assurances. “Wittingly or unwittingly, we have accepted the Turkish preconditions and allowed an extremely serious deviation from our foreign policy course,” said Armen Rustamian, a Dashnaktsutyun leader who chairs the parliament’s foreign relations committee, which organized the hearings.

Rustamian also criticized the government for stressing the importance of open borders for Armenia’s long-term economic development. He drew parallels between that stance and the past conciliatory discourse of former President Levon Ter-Petrosian.

Tigran Torosian, a former parliament speaker who is now highly critical of Armenia’s current leadership, likewise claimed that it has made “unilateral concessions” during the more than yearlong dialogue with the Turks. “What is Turkey giving up in return for our concessions?” he said. “Opening the border, which is its international obligation? Turkey is simply doing what it was supposed to do in the first place.”

Predictably, the opposition critics vehemently objected to the planned creation of a Turkish-Armenian “sub-commission” of historians what will look into the 1915 mass killings of Armenians in the Ottoman Empire. “The creation of that sub-commission presupposes the erasing of all evidence that the genocide took place,” said Vahan Hovannisian, another Dashnaktsutyun leader. “It means that the evidence is not that weighty.”

Nalbandian countered that the panel will not seek to determine whether the Armenian massacres constituted a genocide and will only serve as a forum for Turkish-Armenian discussions on “numerous issues coming from the past.” “This sub-commission has no other mandate,” he said. “Nor does it have any time limits because we realize that this process can last very long. Maybe 10 years, maybe 20 years, maybe 50 years, or maybe longer.”

“The idea is that by talking, opening up to each other, our societies could reach some common denominators,” added the minister.

Eduard Sharmazanov, a parliament deputy from the ruling Republican Party of Armenia (HHK) also saw little cause for concern. “It is the party which has always falsified history that should be more worried,” said Sharmazanov. “It’s Turkey that has falsified history. And that sub-commission could serve as a ticking time bomb for Turkey.”

The HHK and its two junior coalition partners, which together control the vast majority of parliament seats, reaffirmed their full support for the agreements in a further sign that their ratification by the National Assembly is a forgone conclusion. The HHK’s parliamentary leader, Galust Sahakian, claimed that President Serzh Sarkisian and his political allies are undaunted by the opposition criticism.

The bitter debate on the issue, explained Sahakian, is only making the ruling coalition “more vigilant.” “The more blows we get, the more manly we become,” he said.

https://www.azatutyun.am/a/1841367.html

October 1, 2009
PROTOCOLS… BUT AT WHAT COST?

The TRT interview with Sedat Laciner, the Director of International Strategic Research Organization, “Turkey Made The World Remember Karabakh Conflict” published in www.HistoryofTruth.com on 30 September 2009, concerning the protocols that will allegedly be signed on October 10 by Turkey and Armenia, is replete with perceptions and/or predictions that I find hard to accept or support . I decided to share with my readers my responses to that interview on a line-by-line basis.

…

TRT: Why Switzerland?

LACINER: First of all, it is hard to find countries that do not support Armenian allegations.

(EK: There are no countries in the entire continents of Asia or Africa which support Armenian allegations. There are only three countries in Latin America and only two in North America which support Armenian allegations (all because of the Armenian political pressure.) Out of 55 or so countries in Europe, small or large, only 15 support Armenian allegations(also because of the Armenian political intimidation.) In summary, out of some 204 countries which are members of the U.N., only about 20 countries support Armenian allegations—i.e. less than 10 percent. Therefore, to say “it is hard to find countries that do not support Armenian allegations” is incorrect, unfair, and if not based on ignorance or sloppiness, may be even considered malicious. )

LACINER: … Of course it would be better if it would be an objective country like England,

(EK: England? Objective? Really? England is the one party that is most responsible for the continuation of the genocide allegations today which are based on the Blue Book, wartime propaganda material compiled and edited by Toynbee and Bryce. The Turkish parliament in 2005 sent a joint letter/request to the House of Commons and Lords to take back the hearsay and forgeries contained in that book and apologize to Turkey for causing immeasurable suffering by deliberately spreading falsified information. England was at the heart of using Ottoman-Armenians against the Ottoman Empire before, during, and after the WWI. To call England objective would be to ignore history.)

LACINER: …but the mission of mediation is an important factor here. Switzerland was not very ambitious for mediation.

(EK: It is unacceptable, if not also embarrassing, to have to go to Switzerland, hat in hand, and asking for their mediation. Switzerland has passed a law banning questioning a certain characterization of a historic event without the court verdict supporting such ban. Thus, the Swiss have chosen to be a party to the conflict. Who are these Turkish negotiators who ignorantly brought Switzerland into this conflict, much less begged for their mediation? Don’t they have any idea what happened in 1920 in a small town called Sevres just a few kilometers from where they are? Did they forget about spirit of Lausanne 1923? )

LACINER: … On the other hand, it could be an advantage for Turkey that Switzerland previously gave support to the Armenian allegations.

(EK: How can Switzerland’s blatantly pro-Armenian beliefs and policies be an advantage? How can any logical and informed person believe such a naïve suggestion?)

LACINER: … Turkey can make itself understood better and same time it can strengthen its thesis.

(EK: Turkey needs Switzerland to be understood? Or strengthen its thesis? Is it not strong enough now? How can it be stronger by talking to the Swiss? )

TRT: What is the position of Azerbaijan?

LACINER: Turkey is already making all steps with Azerbaijan. Karabakh problem is as important as the issue of so called Armenian genocide for Turkey. Turkey already declared this and Prime Minister several times underlined that fact. In the process, if we count Switzerland, Azerbaijan is like a fourth party. Besides, Turkey and Azerbaijan constantly share information about the processes. Azerbaijan is being informed about developments, other than that Turkey took the approval of Azerbaijan about this issue. Azerbaijan is aware of Turkey’s good will and they trust Turkey.

(EK: Is that why Aliyev hastily went to Russia last May to promise Nabucco-earmarked gas to Russian gas pipeline as soon as news of Turkey-Armenia border opening hit the Turkish media? Because Azerbaijan trusts Turkey? )

LACINER: … The World was unaware of the occupation in Karabakh till now. The land that Armenia keeps under occupation is more than the land that Israel invaded. Turkey made the world realize the occupation in Nagorno-Karabakh.

TRT: What will be the gains of Turkey?

LACINER: Success of protocols is dependent on the process of resolution of Nagorno-Karabakh problem, and that is told to Obama, Russia and France. The next meeting towards resolution of Nagorno-Karabakh conflict will be in a much more serious mood.

(EK: We will see soon enough, won’t we? Too much is bet on too few “perceived” gains that are questionable and doubtful. )

LACINER: … First of all, this process (alone) is the gain of Turkey by itself.

(EK: Says who?)

LACINER: … In the opinion of international community, Turkey had an image like Turkey was smothering Armenia and not letting it develop. By this process Turkey proved that it is not aggressive.

(EK: Not a convincing argument. Even if it were true, does the dubious outcome justify the high cost?)

LACINER: … If protocols can be realized Turkey will gain many more advantages. A committee of historians is planned to be established. Such a committee may undermine the genocide allegations of Armenian Diaspora.

Although there are rumours about borders, recognition of borders clearly mentioned in protocols.
Although Armenia does not recognize treaty of Kars now, they will be recognizing it through protocols.
Dashnaks are very uncomfortable that ratifying protocols will mean that Armenia recognizes Turkey’s territorial integrity.

(EK: As you read these lines, Armenia’s constitution still refers to eastern Anatolia as Western Armenia. Armenia’s politicians and Diaspora make no secret of the fact that they want land and reparations fro Turkey. So, what exactly does it mean to say “recognition of borders clearly mentioned in protocols”? At the first opportunity, cannot Armenia easily say “Yes, Turks put that statement in the protocol, but we never agreed to it”? Then what?

LACINER: … What will be the gains of Turkey? We can count three of them. First is recognition of borders,

(EK: Let’s not count the eggs before the chickens lay them. We don’t even have chickens yet…)

LACINER: … second is about genocide allegations, and third is Nagorno-Karabakh problem.

(EK: Protocol before resolution in Karabagh or resolution in Karabagh before protocol? That is the question. It should have been the latter. Now a resolution in Karabagh will be harder. Why would Armenia feel motivated to end its military occupation and allow Azeri refugees to return now that Armenia got what it wanted?)

LACINER: … Normalization of relations would be the fourth gaining for Turkey.

TRT: What kind of developments are expected to happen in Armenia and Caucasus?

LACINER: … Opening of borders will affect Russia.

(EK: After the Georgian war, Russia was trapped in Armenia. Turkey, through its ill-advised protocols with Armenia, not only saved Armenia but also Russia-in-Armenia.)

LACINER: … But the main problem might be the situation of Georgia. Since Armenia and Azerbaijan use Georgia as a route for transportation, the influence of Georgia will decrease. On the other hand, Azerbaijan will have another gate to World and it will be relaxing for Azerbaijan. But we should not be expecting results so soon. Moving in hurry may cause conflicts in Nagorno-Karabakh.

(EK: Diplomacy and international relations are a balancing act of interests, not unlike a trade. The Turkish term describes it bets: “alis-veris” taking-and-giving. What these protocols represent fro Turkey is “veris-veris”, giving-and-giving.)

What if we lose Azerbaijan’s friendship and support because of a murky dealing with Armenia? Who will fill the Baku-Tiflis-Ceyhan pipeline with oil?

Nothing would make me happier that to be proven wrong on all of the above. But I don’t hold out any hope that the upcoming developments will prove me wrong anytime soon…

October 1, 2009

Thousands Rally Against Protocols;

Protesters Await Pres. Sargsyan in L.A.

By Harut Sassounian

Publisher, The California Courier

Up to 10,000 protesters held a public rally on September 27 in Glendale against the Armenian government’s plans to sign and ratify two Protocols negotiated with Turkey which include several highly controversial issues.

The angry demonstrators expressed their rejection of Pres. Serzh Sargsyan’s conciliatory policies with Armenia’s archenemy — Turkey. They objected to the Armenian government’s concessions to Ankara, particularly its agreement to set up an inter-governmental sub-commission to examine “the historical records” — a Turkish ploy to undermine the recognition of the Armenian Genocide by the international community. The protesters also objected to Armenia’s acceptance of Turkey’s present borders, which would preclude future territorial claims by Armenians.

The rally was jointly organized by the Social Democrat Hunchakian Party, Armenian Revolutionary Federation, Armenian Democratic League, and United Young Armenians. Representatives of the sponsoring organizations delivered fiery speeches against the Protocols. I was keynote speaker at the rally. My remarks were delivered in Armenian. Below are excerpts in English:

“Today is a very sad day for me, as well as for all Armenians worldwide. While Armenia was suffering under the Soviet yoke for 70 years, Armenians worldwide were dreaming of the day when their homeland would be independent, and they would be masters of their own fate. It never occurred to us that when that blessed day would finally arrive and the homeland would be free, we would be compelled to challenge the authorities of independent Armenia.

“Regrettably, out of concern for Armenia’s cherished national interests, we are obliged to gather here to express our indignation and protest against these Protocols. Today, Armenians from all walks of life have come together, regardless of their political and religious affiliations, immigrants and natives alike, to say a loud NO in unison!

“NO, primarily to Turkey, the successor state to the genocidal Ottoman Empire! NO, to the dictatorial regime in Azerbaijan! NO, to territorial concessions on Artsakh! NO, to Russia! NO, to France! NO, to the United States! In particular, NO to the sub-commission on history that would question the facts of the Armenian Genocide! NO, to the Treaty of Kars! And a categorical NO, to the Armenian government’s inept diplomatic initiative on the Protocols!

“We are also gathered here to say YES to all those who defend the Armenian national interest! YES, to all those who pursue the recognition of the Armenian Genocide! YES, to all those who demand compensation from Turkey for damages emanating from the Genocide! YES, to all those who reclaim our historical lands! Finally, YES, to all those who support the independence of the Republic of Artsakh!”

I concluded my remarks by citing the ten major objections I had written about in my last week’s column regarding the Armenia-Turkey Protocols. I expressed “the fervent hope that Armenia’s leaders would have the courage and wisdom to change their minds and not sign and ratify these Protocols. Should they proceed to conclude these infamous agreements, however, I fully expect the next President and National Assembly of Armenia to promptly abrogate them and dump them into the dustbin of history.”

In view of the outpouring of vehement opposition to the Protocols during the Glendale rally, it is reasonable to expect that a much larger protest would take place in front of the President’s hotel, during his Los Angeles visit on October 4.

To avoid a deeper split between the Government of Armenia and Armenians worldwide who outnumber those in the homeland, one would hope that Armenian officials would find a gracious way out of this terrible predicament, in order to bring to an end the discord within the global Armenian family. Armenians need to muster all their resources to jointly counter a resurgent Turkey and a menacing Azerbaijan.

A modest suggestion to Armenia’s leaders, assuming that they are prepared to listen, would be to take a deep breath before making a final determination on the fate of the Protocols. They should be in no rush to sign and ratify them, since the Protocols contain no deadlines. A way out would be to renegotiate and amend these flawed documents.

Otherwise, future generations would not forgive Armenia’s leaders for the lasting damage they would bring to the national interests of Armenia and the Armenian Cause.

September 29, 2009

Back to the Future: Armenian-Turkish Relations

We invite you to a public discussion on

Back to the Future
Armenian-Turkish Relations

Wedesday, September 30, at 3.30 pm
Golden Tulip Yerevan Rossini Restaurant

Participants:
Turkish and Armenian public intellectuals

Please confirm your attendance

by calling 500119

Dear Subscriber ,

The Armenia-Turkey protocols are quite understandably at the center of public discussion in Armenia. Not so surprisingly, they are also part of the international discourse, this week with both Turkish and Armenian leaders referring to them at the United Nations General Assembly Debate. Less natural is the fact that this international debate continues to link the Armenia-Turkey border issue to a resolution of the Karabakh conflict, which may, or more likely, may not augur well for the Armenian side, which is at the receiving end of the brunt of the pressure. It was with all this in mind that Civilitas hosted a forum earlier this week during which Mr. Vartan Oskanian, chairman of the board of the Civilitas Foundation, and former foreign minister, rejected the formulation of the protocols and the way in which the process is moving forward.

As you read his speech (in English) or watch the video (in Armenian), you will notice new additions to the Civilitas site. In our determination to broaden the scope of debate on our domestic and foreign, political and economic situation, we offer FACTS FOR THOUGHT — statistics and numbers which say volumes about Armenia and the region — and we invite your comments.

Finally, we invite you to participate, if you are in Yerevan, in the first Civilitas Armenia-Turkey Dialogue public forum, to take place on Wednesday, September 30. We believe this is an appropriate way to conclude the very interesting and successful exhibition of postcards documenting Armenian life in Turkey, 100 years ago. Turkish journalist, editor, publisher Osman Koker has been in Yerevan for two weeks, following the responses to the exhibition, offering tours to students and others wanting more detailed information about the life and traditions these postcards illustrate. A gallery of these postcards will be online soon.

We await your comments.

Salpi H. Ghazarian

Director

The Civilitas Foundation

One Northern Avenue, Suite 30,

Yerevan, Armenia
[email protected]

Tel./Fax: (+374 10) 500 119

September 27, 2009

Sarkisian to Visit Diaspora to Muster Support For Protocols
By Asbarez Staff on Sep 24th, 2009

YEREVAN (RFE/RL)–President Serzh Sarkisian said on Thursday that he will tour major Armenian communities abroad early next month to explain and promote his far-reaching diplomatic overtures to Turkey which the Diaspora have been following with unease.

Sarkisian made the announcement as he met with His Holiness Karekin II, the Catholicos of All Armenians at Echmiadzin. He said he will start on October 1 a series of visits to Paris, New York, Los Angeles, Beirut and Rostov-on-Don, Russia.

All of those cities and their surrounding areas have sizable Armenian communities. Sarkisian was quoted by his press service as telling the Catholicos that he wants to hear community leaders’ “views on the process of the normalization of Turkish-Armenian relations.”

Karekin II welcomed the initiative.

“The Diaspora is an important and inseparable part of our people and it is only right for our Diaspora sons … to be able to hear answers from you personally to questions preoccupying them,” said Karakin II, according to the presidential press service. “Also, you will expose yourself to the thoughts, opinions and concerns of our Diaspora sons.”

Diaspora leaders have expressed serious concern about key points of two Turkish-Armenian draft protocols envisaging the normalization of bilateral relations. They are particularly critical of the planned creation of a Turkish-Armenian panel of historians that would probe the Genocide.

The Diaspora also opposes another protocol clause that commits Armenia to recognizing its existing border with Turkey based on past relevant treaties. This clause will preclude future Armenian claims to the territories of historic Armenia illegally occupied by the Republic of Turkey.

His Holiness Aram I, Catholicos of the Great House of Cilicia added his voice to those concerns in a letter to Sarkisian made public on Thursday. “The ongoing developments in the establishment of diplomatic relations between Armenia and Turkey have become a cause for serious concern in the Diaspora,” he wrote.

Aram I singled out the planned “sub-commission” of historians for criticism. He said its existence would make it easier for Ankara to deny the Armenian Genocide.

Etchmiadzin has rarely challenged Yerevan governments and will likely be more supportive of the Turkish-Armenian rapprochement. Karekin II told Sarkisian that the church’s Supreme Spiritual Council will meet soon to discuss and formulate its position on the issue.

The planned meetings will be part of “internal political consultations” which Ankara and Yerevan pledged to initiate before signing the controversial protocols by mid-October. Sarkisian described the intensifying debates on the matter as “very useful.”

“Of course, they have some emotional manifestations and elements,” Sarkisain told Karekin II. “And it could not have been otherwise because a huge segment of our people are a generation of persons subjected to genocide. Besides, we have our shrines, our churches, our [medieval] capital and the remnants of many, many people’s ancestral homes across the [Turkish] border.”

“I do realize this because often times I myself internally struggling with my emotions,” added Sarkisian.

Related Posts
1. Pro-Turkish Congressmen Support Protocols
2. Aram I Appeals to Sarkisian on Protocols
3. Markarian Says Sarkisian Should Not Sign Protocols
4. US Hopes For Sarkisian Visit To Turkey
5. Karekin II, Aram I Visit Sarkisian, Express Support
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September 25, 2009

Category: Armenian Question

Armenian Americans Divided Over Thaw With Turkey

Armenian FM Under Opposition Fire

PROTOCOLS… BUT AT WHAT COST?

Thousands Rally Against Protocols;

Back to the Future: Armenian-Turkish Relations

Sarkisian to Visit Diaspora to Muster Support For Protocols

Related Posts

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