Turkish PM pays tribute to people who died in 1915

ANKARA

Regardless of their ethnic or religious origins, we pay tribute, with compassion and respect, to all Ottoman citizens who lost their lives in the events of 1915, Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan has said in a written statement. 

Erdogan released the message on Wednesday ahead of the anniversary of the events of 1915, which led to an unknown number of people dying in civil strife after the Ottoman Empire approved a deportation law for Armenians in April 24 of that year. 

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 uprose against the Ottoman authority. The uprisings were followed by a relocation decision of the Ottoman Empire concerning Armenians living in eastern Anatolia.

As a result, an unknown number of people died amid civil strife.

Erdogan said: "Armenians who lost their lives in the events in the early twentieth century rest in peace, and we convey our condolences to their grandchildren."

"In Turkey, expressing different opinions and thoughts freely on the events of 1915 is the requirement of a pluralistic society as well as of a culture of democracy and modernity," said Erdogan in the statement released in Turkish, English, French, Armenian and several other languages.

Erdogan said that any conscientious, fair and humane approach to the Armenian issue was required in order to bring forth an understanding of all the suffering experienced during the period, regardless of religion or ethnicity.

"It is a humane and scientific duty to view this tragic history from the perspective of fair memory. It should not deter reciprocal humane attitudes and the establishment of sympathy between the Turkish and Armenian people that incidents which had inhumane results, like the 1915 relocation, occured during the First World War when millions of people from all religions and nationalities lost their lives."

What was experienced during the First World War is our mutual pain," said Erdogan.

'Climate of freedom'

Erdogan stated that Turkey was open to reconsidering its approach to the issue, and added: "Some may perceive this climate of freedom in Turkey as an opportunity to express accusatory, offensive and even provocative assertions and allegations."

"Even so, if this will enable us to understand historical issues with their actual aspects and to transform resentment to friendship again, we will consider different discourses with empathy and tolerance and expect a similar attitude from all sides."

Erdogan also called for Turkish and Armenian societies not to derive enmity from history and create new antagonisms.

"The spirit of the age necessitates dialogue despite differences, understanding by heeding others, evaluating the means for compromise, denouncing hatred, and praising respect and tolerance."

"It is with this understanding that we have opened our archives to all researchers. Today, hundreds of thousands of documents in our archives are at the service of historians," he said.

The Armenian diaspora and the state of Armenia term the incidents as "genocide" and ask for compensation, whereas Turkey says that, while Armenians died during the deportation, many Turks also died due to the attacks by Armenian gangs all across Anatolia.

Turkey open to academic research of 1915 events: PM

Turkey calls for academic research of the 1915 events to be carried out by a commission of Turkish, Armenian and international historians, the Turkish Prime Ministry said in a written statement on Wednesday ahead of the aniversary of the events. 

Erdogan released a message for the anniversary of 1915 events which began when the Ottoman Empire approved a deportation law in April 24, 1915 for Armenians, when they held an uprising, aided by the the invading Russian army, during the First World War. As a result, an unknown number of people died in civil strife.

 "In Turkey, expressing different opinions and thoughts freely on the events of 1915 is the requirement of a pluralistic society as well as of a culture of democracy and modernity," said Erdogan in the statement released in Turkish, English and French.

Erdogan said that any conscientious, fair and humane approach to the Armenian issue is required to bring forth an understanding of all the suffering experienced during that period regardless of religion or ethnicity.

Erdogan stated that Turkey is open to consideration on its approach to this issue and added: "Some may perceive this climate of freedom in Turkey as an opportunity to express accusatory, offensive and even provocative assertions and allegations. Even so, if this will enable us to understand historical issues with their actual aspects and to transform resentment to friendship again, we will consider different discourses with empathy and tolerance and expect a similar attitude from all sides."

US welcomes Turkish PM’s Armenia 1915 announcement

The U.S. has welcomed a recent statement by the Turkish Prime Minister in which he offered condolences to the descendants of Armenians killed during World War I.

“We welcome Prime Minister Erdogan's historic public acknowledgement of the suffering that Armenians experienced in 1915,” said Jen Psaki, the State Department spokeswoman. “We believe this is a positive indication that there can be a full, frank and just acknowledgement of the facts, which we hope will advance the cause of reconciliation between Turks and Armenians.”

Exactly what unfolded in 1915 continues to be a contentious issue between Turkey and Armenia that has proven a spoiler in relations between the two neighbors. 

Armenia and the Armenian diaspora claim that nothing short of "genocide" occurred at the hands of Ottoman authorities under a relocation order of a part of the ethnic Armenians in the then-empire. But Turkey says that both Turks and Armenians died during clashes between Ottoman forces and armed Armenian groups backed by Russia.  

Earlier Wednesday Recep Tayyip Erdogan, the Turkish Prime Minister, released a statement in nine languages, including Armenian, in which he termed the events of 1915 as “inhumane.”

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