Turkey’s "Generosity" on the Eve of 100th Anniversary of Genocide Raises a Number of Logical Questions

12:52     20 January, 2015

On January 20, Turkish Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoğlu made a statement calling the Armenians to overcome existing differences and to start "humane relationship". A Hurriyet reports, Turkish Prime Minister in his speech particularly noted:

"It’s possible for two ancient people to have the maturity to understand each other and to look to the future together. Turks and Armenians, sharing the same geography and a long history, can only talk to each other about their problems and seek together ways to resolve them. It is a necessity for us to develop mutual trust and cooperation, to know each other again in the light of our 800 years of common history, and to engage in a humane relationship." 

No matter how generous the call of the Turkish Prime Minister at first glance may seem, it brings with it a number of logical questions, which are always intentionally left unanswered by the Turkish officials. How can one speak of necessary level of maturity "to understand each other and to look to the future" when one does not have a courage to face his own past and take responsibility for the crimes on the past? Is there a single psychologist or human behavior analyst, who will consider a person to be mature when the latter is not able to regret for the sufferings his country has inflicted on others? Is it possible "to look to the future together, to develop mutual trust and cooperation", when the concept of "just memory" is continuously distorted by the Turkish side?

Another questionable initiative undertaken by the Turkish side on the eve of 100^th anniversary of Genocide was the invitation of the Turkish president Recep Tayyip Erdoğan addressed to the Armenian president to participate in the 100^th anniversary of the victory of the Battle of Gallipoli, which Turkey plans to celebrate for the first time in hundred years  on April 24 of this year (it should be mentioned the Battle of Gallipoli  began on March 18, 1915 and lasted till late January, 1916, while  allies’ land campaign- Gallipoli land battle- took place on April 25, 1915.) Here another main logical question arises: what made Turkey to celebrate the victory of the Battle of Gallipoli on April 24, the date when the Armenians commemorate the memory of 1.500.000 Armenians massacred in the Ottoman Empire?

These are the simple questions the logical answers of which shed light on real motives of Turkey on the eve of 100^th anniversary of the Armenian Genocide.