Aravot.am asked the political scientist, Gagik Hambaryan, whether assuming the office of the President of Turkey by Recep Tayyip Erdoğan would change the course of Turkish-Armenian relations. “Erdoğan’s becoming a President will absolutely change nothing in the Armenian-Turkish relations, nor in the region, because the latter, being the Prime Minister of Turkey, he had led the foreign policy, Davutoğlu was guided by his instructions … With regard to the Armenian-Turkish relations, I cannot predict anything good because the latter is presenting a maximalist demands to Armenia willing to involve the Nagorno-Karabakh issue into the Armenian-Turkish relations, which is no absolute advantage for us, denies the reality of the Armenian Genocide in the international arena, combats recognition of the Armenian Genocide, runs a pro-Azerbaijani foreign policy, as well as does everything to enisle Armenia, and avoid making it involved in any project. It obviously runs an anti-Armenian policy”.
The political scientist also recalls that Erdoğan was the Prime Minister who was publishing fake and invented numbers of Armenians living illegally in Turkey. “He was announcing that there are 100 thousand Armenians living in Turkey. There is no such thing. I can say that a total of 100 people are living in Turkey, of which 70-80 thousand are Turkish citizens, mostly living in Istanbul, Smyrna and several villages of western Armenia. The other 20-30 thousand are citizens of Armenia, who temporarily living in Turkey, are mostly engaged in low-paid jobs, i.e. nursing the elderly or being engaged in retail trade. And to blackmail that he will exile 20 thousand people from the Turkish territory, it would be the first sharp blow to the Turkish state, because thus they would once again show that Turkey is a country of nationalists, and other nations, other religions holders have no place there”.
According to political scientist, Gagik Hambaryan, since 1920, the Turkish state is doing everything to make the Armenian name be erased from pages of history of Turkey, whereas it’s impossible, because the Turks themselves know very well whom the eastern part of their state historically belongs to. In addition, as listed by the political scientist, numerous monuments in Istanbul and Smyrna were created by the hands of Armenians. Dolmabahçe palace, which is the pride of the Turks, is the creation of architect Palyans, the Turkish alphabet is also created by an Armenian, Armenians staged the performance in the first theater in Turkey… The Hagia Sophia cathedral dome, the Byzantine Empire and generally the world’s biggest Christian temple, was built by architect Trdat, the author of Cathedral of Ani.
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Back to attendance at the inauguration ceremony of the newly elected President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan by Armenian Foreign Minister Edward Nalbandyan, yesterday, the political scientist believes that failure to respond to formal invitation by Turkey in given case would not be correct. According to him, though the invitation was addressed to Serzh Sargsyan, but having no diplomatic relations and being in complex relationship with this country, the president of Armenia did right not personally attending Erdoğan’s inauguration ceremony. As said by Gagik Hambaryan, even though Turkey can use the invitation sent to the president of Armenia to its benefit in the international arena, emphasizing that it is in good relations with Armenia, but failure to attend by Armenia, at least at the level of foreign ministry, would also be wrong. In this case, Turkey would announce in the international arena that it stretches out a hand, whereas Armenia refuses.
Nune AREVSHATYAN
