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Vigen Sargsyan, the Head of Staff of the President of the Republic of Armenia, responded to the statement made by the Prime Minister of Turkey Recep Tayyip Erdoğan ahead of the Armenian Genocide Remembrance Day marked on April 24. Vigen Sargsyan replied to the question of Armenpress News Agency at Tsitsernakaberd Memorial Complex.

- Mr. Sargsyan, the Prime Minister of Turkey Recep Tayyip Erdoğan has made an unexpected statement ahead of April 24. How would You comment on the approaches introduced in it?

- We have read that statement by Turkey’s Prime Minister very attentively trying to find the first attempt to face with history, but unfortunately we have to state that the statement is another, perhaps a more advanced expression of denial and concealing the crime of the Armenian Genocide.

There are all the theses of the Turkish propaganda machine, which are already known to everyone, including viewing the victim and the executor on the same level, distortion of the cause- consequence relation, and a call to form instruments to review the historical facts everybody is familiar with.

Actually, Turkey is required to do something different – to recognize history and unequivocally condemn all the crimes in it. It is known as repentance in Christianity. I am confident it has equivalents in other religions as well. As President Sargsyan noted in his address: “Only recognition and condemnation can prevent the repetition of such crimes in the future.” By the way, to condemn the crimes of the past does not mean to recognize the entire people, which bears that history, as criminal. It’s necessary to point on those, who developed and carried out that policy. First of all it’s necessary for the people, which bears that history, as this is the only way to separate the people from the disgraceful pages of history.

The Prime Minister of Turkey talks about the necessity not to turn history into hostility and political contradiction. But it’s a fact that Turkey’s attitude towards the Armenians and Armenia is not a history, as it is being entirely continued in modern politics. The illegal blockade of Armenia and Turkey’s policy towards Armenia in international structures are its expressions.

As to the dialogue, Prime Minister Erdoğan calls to, then I should remind that we had such a dialogue and it found its logical formulation in the Zurich protocols and the Turkish side stepped back from their ratification. The President of the Republic of Armenia stated in his address “The attitude toward Armenia can no longer be measured by words” and the idea of “reasonable terms” for the ratification of the protocols is becoming more urgent than ever.