Prince George Citizen, Canada
April 26 2009
Turkey recalls ambassador to Canada after Armenian commemoration
Written by THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
Saturday, 25 April 2009
ANKARA, Turkey – Turkey recalled its ambassador to Canada, the Foreign
Ministry said Wednesday, after Canadian government ministers
reportedly took part in an event that labelled the Ottoman-era
killings of Armenians as genocide.
Ambassador Rafet Akgunay was called back for "thorough evaluations and
consultations," Foreign Ministry spokesman Burak Ozugergin said,
without saying why Akgunay was recalled or for how long.
Another government official, who spoke on condition of anonymity in
line with government rules, said the ambassador was being withdrawn
temporarily to protest an event earlier this week in Canada
commemorating the deaths of Armenians at the end of the First World
War as genocide.
The official said Prime Minister Stephen Harper sent a message to the
ceremony, which angered Turkey. Turkish news reports said Canadian
officials took part in the event.
It is the second time that Turkey has recalled its ambassador to
Canada over the genocide dispute. In 2006, Turkey criticized Harper
for remarks he made in support of recognizing the mass killings as
genocide and briefly withdrew its ambassador. It also pulled out of a
military exercise in Canada in protest.
Historians estimate that up to 1.5 million Armenians were killed by
Ottoman Turks – an event widely viewed by genocide scholars as the
first genocide of the 20th century. Turkey denies that the deaths
constituted genocide, contending the toll has been inflated and the
casualties were victims of civil war and unrest.
Legislators in the United States have also introduced a resolution
that would call the death genocide. If passed, the resolution could
undermine efforts by President Barack Obama’s administration to win
NATO ally Turkey’s help on key foreign policy goals.
U.S. legislators almost passed a similar resolution two years ago, but
congressional leaders did not bring it up for a vote after intense
pressure from the Bush administration.
Obama avoided the term "genocide" when he addressed Turkish
legislators during his visit a month ago. But he said, in response to
a question, that he had not changed his views. As a presidential
candidate, Obama said the killings amounted to genocide.
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