Turkey on Friday responded to a statement by US President Donald Trump about the Armenian Remembrance Day in which he used the Armenian term "Meds Yeghern," to describe the Armenian Genocide of 1915.
In a written statement, Turkey's Foreign Ministry said Trump's remarks were based on the "subjective" narrative of Armenians trying to turn the issue into a "dogma," Anadolu news agency reported.
The ministry said it rejected Trump's "claims," which it said catered to domestic political motives. It also accused Trump's statement of ignoring the "suffering" of morethan 500,000 Muslims killed at the time by Armenians, calling for this understanding to be "changed."
The ministry further noted that Turkey's proposal to establish a joint historical commission to examine the 1915 events was still on the table. Arguing that "radical Armenians" sought to eliminate this proposal in a bid to have their own responsibility in the events forgotten, the ministry called on the US to see this reality and act accordingly.
The statement concluded in remembrance of all Muslims, Christians and Jews who lost their lives in the period of collapse in the Ottoman Empire.
To note, in his statement Trump stated that beginning in 1915, 1 and a half million Armenians were deported, massacred, or marched to their deaths in the final years of the Ottoman Empire. ”On this day of remembrance, we pay respect to those who suffered and lost their lives, while also renewing our commitment to fostering a more humane and peaceful world,” the statement read in part.