Turkey Offers Condolences to Armenians Over Killings
For the first time, the Turkish government offered condolences on Wednesday to the descendants of Armenians who were killed by the Ottoman Army in 1915. But it stood by its official position that the events were not a genocide, as they have been called by several Western governments and international organizations.
The office of Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan posted a lengthy statement on the matter on its website, and it was translated into nine languages, including Armenian. The statement encouraged people to talk about and remember their losses “with maturity.”
“And it is with this hope and belief that we wish that the Armenians who lost their lives in the context of the early 20th century rest in peace, and we convey our condolences to their grandchildren,” the statement said.