Ankara calls on Yerevan to create a historian commission with inclusion of third parties

PanARMENIAN.Net - Turkey calls on Armenia to create a historian commission with the inclusion of third parties, in order to examine events in 1915. "I hereby extend an invitation to any third country, including the United States, to contribute to this commission by appointing scholars who will earnestly work to shed light on this tragedy and open ways for us to come together," said Turkish Foreign Minister Abdullah Gul in his editorial for The Washington Times titled "Politicizing the Armenian tragedy". Criticizing the Armenian lobby for politicizing the past and imposing his view of history, Gul said it is "truly regrettable that there is no mention of Turkish or Muslim lives lost during the same period". "The only way to find out what happened in 1915 is to ask scholars who have the ability to evaluate the period objectively, working with the full range of available primary sources. Turkey has no difficulties in facing its past. We eagerly await a positive response from Armenia, agreeing to establish this joint commission and declaring its readiness to accept its conclusion," he said. The Turkish FM underlined that the establishment of such a commission will also help shape an atmosphere conducive to the normalization of Turkish-Armenian relations.