3 yıl önce

Turkey: Biden’s statement spurring Armenian extremism in US

Armenian groups at a protest in Beverly Hills, LA hanged a mannequin depicting an Azerbaijani after President Joe Biden’s decision to call the events of 1915 an Armenian “genocide”.

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Turkey's Communications Director Fahrettin Altun talks at an exhibition paying tribute to Turkish diplomats who were assassinated by Armenian terrorist organisations in Sirkeci train station, İstanbul on April 24, 2021.

Turkey has expressed concern over the escalation in acts of violence against Azerbaijanis in the US carried out by Armenian extremists, which Ankara’s communications director has linked to Washington “distorting history”.

Turkey's Communications Director Fahrettin Altun shared a video on Twitter showing a group of Armenian extremists conducting a "hanging ceremony" of a mannequin depicting an "Azerbaijani."

Distorting history further encourages Armenian extremists, who threaten violence against Azerbaijanis in the US. We are concerned about this escalation, stand with 🇦🇿 against threats, and urge the authorities to act. Our exhibition on Turkey’s slain diplomats is open thru 5/1. https://t.co/otjb6uhCFt
— Fahrettin Altun (@fahrettinaltun) April 27, 2021

Voicing Turkey's concerns Altun underlined its solidarity with Azerbaijan against such threats and urged "authorities to act."

The incident came after President Joe Biden called the events of 1915 "genocide" on Saturday, breaking with years of US precedent.

Turkey sees 1915 events as tragedy

Turkey’s position on the events of 1915 is that the deaths of Armenians in eastern Anatolia took place when some sided with invading Russians and revolted against Ottoman forces. A subsequent relocation of Armenians resulted in numerous casualties.

Turkey objects to the presentation of these incidents as “genocide,” describing them as a tragedy in which both sides suffered casualties.

Ankara has repeatedly proposed the creation of a joint commission of historians from Turkey and Armenia as well as international experts to tackle the issue.

Successive US presidents have refrained from calling the deaths of Armenians “genocide,” but former President Barack Obama adopted the Armenian phrase “Meds Yeghern” or “Great Crime” to describe the tragedy, a practice repeated by Trump.

Killings of Turkish diplomats

Armenian terror organisations have killed 31 Turkish diplomats and family members since the 1970s.

According to data compiled by Anadolu Agency, a total of 77 people – 58 of them Turkish citizens, including 31 diplomats and members of their family – lost their lives in attacks carried out by these terror organisations.

The vast majority of the attacks were carried out by the Armenian Secret Army for the Liberation of Armenia (ASALA) and the Justice Commandos of the Armenian Genocide (JCAG).

ASALA, founded in 1975, was the first Armenian terrorist organisation to wage war against Turkey.

It not only targeted Turkey but also other countries and became infamous for a bomb attack on the Beirut office of the World Council of Churches in 1975.

The JCAG was formed in 1975 in Beirut. However, it is nationalistic, not Marxist-Leninist like ASALA.

Claiming that it only received support from the Armenia diaspora rather than foreign partners, JCAG only targeted Turkey because it believed that attacking other countries would damage the so-called "Armenian struggle."

It initially gained notoriety by claiming responsibility with ASALA for an attack on Turkey’s Ambassador in Vienna Danis Tunaligil on October 22, 1975.

SOURCE: TRTWorld and agencies