Turks and Armenians: Is reconciliation possible?

Friday, July 29, 2005 Updated at 1:42 AM EDT
Special to Globe and Mail Update
By OZAY MEHMET
(Ozay Mehmet is professor emeritus of international affairs at Carleton University in Ottawa.)

On Oct. 3, Turkey will start accession talks for European Union membership. These talks will be long and hard because Ankara will have to settle [...] some difficult questions relating to Cyprus, Kurds and the Aegean, as well as Armenian claims of genocide in 1915.

Of all the issues facing Ankara, the most sensitive is the Armenian one. Until recently, the Turkish government has taken a narrow perspective, saying this matter should be left to historians to settle. This is no longer adequate. [...].

The new element is that Ankara wants to normalize its relations with Armenia. It has already opened an air corridor between Istanbul and Yerevan, and appears willing to open a border gate for movement of goods and people.

But, in return, Ankara has a number of demands of Yerevan. It wishes to see: (1) progress in talks with Azerbaijan over the thorny issue of Nagorno-Karabakh, an Azeri territory now under Armenian occupation; (2) Armenia's endorsement of a joint historical commission to settle the dispute over 1915; (3) suspension of "genocide" claims pending the work of the proposed joint commission; and (4) recognition of current borders and renouncement of implied territorial claims by Armenia.

[...] the future of Turkish-Armenian relations is indexed to the issue of "genocide" claims. This is an exceedingly sensitive matter precisely because it is interwoven with national pride and self-identity on both sides.

[...] Turkish nation, led by Mustafa Kemal Atatürk, capping the successful war of independence (1919-23) with the peace treaty at Lausanne that replaced the stillborn Sèvres Treaty that promised a Greater Armenia in eastern Turkey (an area heavily Kurdish, by the way).

By contrast, the Armenian nation ended up as a tiny country outside Turkish borders, and became a victim of the 1917 Bolshevik Revolution. Landlocked, next door to Georgia and Azerbaijan, Armenia was, until 1991, a country under Soviet occupation. It needs Turkish co-operation to open to the rest of the world. [...] .

Where does the future of Turkish-Armenian relations lie? The initiative remains primarily in Ankara's hands. [...]. The main obstacle is division in Turkey itself. [...]. There are, sadly, extremists within Turkey [...], some carrying influence in high places. Anti-Turkish camps in the EU only serve to strengthen these extremist forces.

Just weeks ago in Istanbul, there was the case of a cancelled alternative conference of academics to discuss the history of Ottoman Armenians. The justice minister, a member of the nationalist faction of the ruling Justice and Development Party and evidently out of step with Mr. Erdogan's open-door policy, harshly criticized this academic event, obliging the hosting university to drop it. By his action, the minister weakened his government's Armenia policy and provided ammunition for Turkey's opponents in Europe and beyond.
[...]
As far as the Armenian "genocide" claims go, Turkey must stay the course outlined by Mr. Erdogan to face history and promote reconciliation. Buried in the tragic history of 1915, there is too much suffering for Turks and Armenians alike. The way to reconciliation is for both sides to acknowledge that too many lives were lost in this war period and that the memory of the dead, whether Turk or Armenian, deserves respect. The time for mutual mourning has come.

Note: Above are excerpts from the article. The full article appears here. Clarifications and comments by me are contained in {}. Deletions are marked by [...]. The bold emphasis is mine.