Zaman Online, Turkey
May 13 2005
Erdogan: We will not Walk into Trap of Alleged Genocide
By Budapest
Published: Friday 13, 2005
zaman.com
Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayip Erdogan has said the Armenian
genocide allegations are a trap prepared against Turkey. Erdogan is
currently in Hungary for official talks, including a meeting with his
Hungarian counterpart Ferenc Gyurcdsany.
Erdogan answered a question of whether or not the Armenian Genocide
allegations would affect Turkey’s European Union (EU) membership
process in a press conference after the meeting by saying, “The issue
of the alleged Armenian Genocide is not among the Copenhagen
Criteria,” and he added that there is no such condition at the
moment. Erdogan referred to the countries which had passed
legislation recognizing the Armenian Genocide law and said: “I could
also bring a genocide committed in another country to my agenda and
we could make this law in our parliament. We could also judge the
countries that have recognized the alleged Armenian Genocide, but the
trap set for Turkey is an unethical one. Turkey will not walk into
this trap.”