German Federal Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder has backed the initiative of Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan on forming a historical commission to study the Armenian Genocide in 1915, the German Chancellor stated at a meeting with Turkish PM, reported Reuters Ankara. In the course of the conversation the German Chancellor did not call the events of 1915 a «genocide.» Schroeder also noted that improvement of the state of national minorities is available in Turkey and urges the country to continue the reforms. He also backed Erdogan in the EU providing financial assistance of 259 million euros to Northern Cyprus.