Kuwait News Agency (KUNA)
June 21, 2012 Thursday
Turkish-French ties thawing
ANKARA, June 21 (KUNA) — Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu
announced Thursday that his country decided to scrap the sanctions
imposed on France in the wake of a bill, backed by the administration
of former French president Nicolas Sarkozy, to criminalize denial of
the so-called Armenian genocide of 1915.
In an interview with the private TV channel CNN Turk Davutoglu said
the decision is based on Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s
instructions. “We can see that the newly-elected President Francois
Hollande has the will to work through problems and turn over a new
leaf in the bilateral ties,” the minister pointed out. Angered by the
French Senate’s approval of the controversial bill in last December,
Turkey adopted a range of harsh punitive measures against France,
freezing the political, economic and military ties including the
military cooperation under the NATO umbrella.
Later on the French Constitutional Court overturned the bill.
Today’s move marks a major breakthrough in the relationship between
the two NATO allies. (end) mm.gb KUNA 212025 Jun 12NNNN
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