Scheduled to Meet with Ambassador Markarian to State Concerns
The ARF Eastern Region Central Committee (CC) issued a statement on Sept. 13 denouncing the protocols recently announced by the foreign ministers of Armenia and Turkey for the normalization of diplomatic relations between Turkey and Armenia.
The statement notes that while the Central Committee agrees that Armenia and Turkey “must take steps to normalize relations,” any protocols between the two neighboring countries must be free of preconditions that are dangerous to Armenia’s national interests.
The protocols “only codify grave errors in Armenia’s current foreign policy,” the statement asserts. “As issued, the protocols reveal that Armenia has willingly accepted establishment of relations with Turkey based on preconditions that are dangerous to Armenia’s sovereignty, safety, and integrity, and that benefit long-held official Turkish government interests, including denial of the Armenian Genocide and destruction of the protected self-determination rights of Nagorno-Karabagh’s citizens.”
The Central Committee has called on all Armenians residing in communities throughout the eastern United States to support a “Protest for Justice” this Sat., Sept. 19 from 12-3 p.m. at the Republic of Armenia’s Permanent Mission to the United Nations, 119 East 36th St. in New York.
The protest is sponsored by the Armenian Youth Federation (AYF) Eastern Region to support recognition of the Armenian Genocide and protest efforts to undermine genocide recognition and the relinquishing of reparation rights.
“We support the AYF’s protest,” said CC chairman Antranig Kasbarian. “All concerned Armenians should find a way to be present in New York City on Sept. 19 to support the AYF’s effort to bring wide attention to this issue and pressure the government of Armenia to go back to the drawing board with Turkey and remove all preconditions dangerous to the Armenian nation.”
In addition to supporting the AYF’s Sept. 19 protest, the CC has established an “e-card” campaign, is mobilizing its local committees for action, and will lead a national delegation to meet with Armenian Ambassador to the United States Tatoul Markarian to present and discuss the ARF Eastern Region’s position on the current state of the protocols.
I cannot understand how both Serge Sargsyan and Edward Nalbandyan can sign the protocols supposedly to normalyze relations with Turkey when Turkey has never as yet recognized the one and a half millions of Armenians systematic annihilation from 1915 through 1923. Turkey is long overdue to recognize the Armenian Genocide and start giving reparations to Armenians and Armenia. After all Germany is still giving reparations of money to the survivors of the Haulocaust that happened in 1945. Turkey ows us our lands back. Turkey by the systematic annihilation of 1.5 Million Armenians took control over our Armenian lands that was Armenia for over 7 thousand years. Today’s Eastern part of Turkey was Armenian Highlands and it belongs to the heirs of the survivors of the Armenian Genocide and to Armenia. There is absolutely no dispute about that.
Furthermore, by signing the protocols we must not acknowledge the integrity of the Turkish borders as fait-a-complit, as Turkey ows us reparations and the return of our lands. By Signing the protocols Turkey wants their border’s integrity to be satisfied, while completely ignoring the self determination of the rights of Nagorno-Karapagh/Artsakh. Artsakh belongs to the Armenian people and the Armenian people already won the war for almost 20 years now. To begin with those lands were Armenian lands for thousands of years while only in 1921 Stalin gave it away to appease and please Attaturk along with our own Nakhichevan. If and when Artsakh’s self determination is jeopardized and taken away by the enemy, the existing Armenian lands will follow. Armenia’s sovereignty will be jeopardized if Artsakh goes, therefore the right for Artsakh’s recognition by the world’s powerful nations to the rights of self determination of the people of Nagorno-Karapagh/Artsakh is directly linked with the survival of Armenia.
We must remind Turkey then whether Armenia should question the validity of the self determination of the Turkish people in Cyprus.
The ARF must call for Serge Sargsyan’s removal as President. He was illegally put into office and is destroying the Armenian nation.
Agreed Tsolin and I must add that the same applies to Edward Nalbandyan.
We must not rest ’till we get our land back and all the pain we suffured heeled. Turkey must admit to the crime of Armenians.