Ankara-Paris tension hits the roof on day of genocide denial bill vote

Despite the attempts of some French officials at toning down the argument between Paris and Ankara, the French Parliament has almost unilaterally dismissed Ankara's calls to reconsider a genocide denial bill that would make it punishable under French law to deny that the Ottoman era killings of Armenians in 1915 constituted genocide, a move Ankara considers not only a threat to its foreign policy around the world but also a blow to the basic human right of expression of freedom.

As visits by Turkish delegations yielded no results in preventing the French Parliament from making a move Turkey believes to be “strictly motivated by petty political calculations,” Turkish top officials attempted to make the big move and warn French President Nicolas Sarkozy personally of the possible financial and diplomatic consequences, but they were stonewalled by Sarkozy's office, which hints at the possibility that the French leader might be in a bind ahead of the approaching elections and did not actually put much thought to the whole genocide debate rather than seeing it as a viable means for his party to attract more votes.

Following the message Turkish President Abdullah Gül issued on Tuesday in which he called on France one last time to refrain from taking the “irreversible” step and sacrificing the “ancient Turkish and French friendship and alliance,” Gül's office stated that the Turkish president tried to contact his French counterpart several times on the phone, but his attempts were turned down with excuses in a way that raised the possibility in Ankara that Sarkozy is shying away from a direct challenge from Turkey on the denial bill. Turkey has been highly agitated by the discussion of a historical matter concerning Turks and Armenians in foreign parliaments in ways it considers “inconsiderate and petty,” and accuses France of straying from a path of democracy to “a mentality from the dark ages,” as Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoğlu put it last week.

In the light of Ankara's current pessimism with regards to French-Turkish ties, news has emerged that a defense industry-related tender would be the country's first move against should the French bill be passed. A French-Italian firm, along with firms from the US, China and Russia, have been rivals at a high-altitude air defense system tender of an estimated value of $4 billion. After the latest tension, the French-Italian company may have a reduced chance at winning the project. Another tender at stake for French firms is a helicopter bid that had grabbed the attention of Eurocopter, a German-French firm, but the chances are now slim for the company at winning this tender.

Although Ankara has recalled its lobbying delegations from France, it found another unlikely ally in its bid against the denial bill, the Armenians. Alongside the Turkish reaction to a manipulated treatment of their history at the hands of a European parliament, Armenians are also increasingly voicing their protest against the denial bill, a move they consider “insincere” with no regard for their pain, but a sheer political argument to win over more votes.

The Armenian Patriarchate of Turkey on Tuesday called on France, warning that approval of the legislation will deal a severe blow to the historic ties of brotherhood between Turks and Armenians.

In a written statement on Tuesday the patriarchate said: “As we always say, this country belongs to all of us. We all breathe the same air and drink the same water here. Last week, we shared aşure [Noah's pudding] with our Muslim neighbors. Next week Armenians will cook aşure and return their neighbors' gesture of kindness and abundance in the same bowls that were given to them. These bowls are very fragile and valuable. We all need to pay attention not to break them. Unfortunately, the international community sometimes ignores such facts. Developments abroad [such as the one in France] only serve to nourish a bitter enmity. We all know that this fight cannot last forever; it should not last forever. Neighbors, not anyone else, should end this fight.”

The patriarchate's statement also told France that it cannot let a 1,600-year-long history and a bright future awaiting Turks and Armenians be overshadowed by the incidents of 1915.

“Doing so will be a great mistake and an injustice to the friendship between the Turkish and Armenian peoples. The children of this country do not deserve this,” added the statement.

Some Armenians and others say 1.5 million Anatolian Armenians were killed in a systematic campaign of genocide during World War I. Turkey says the figures are inflated and insists that the killings occurred as the Ottoman Empire was trying to quell an uprising of Armenians, who revolted against Ottoman rule for independence, in collaboration with the Russian army, which was then invading eastern Anatolia.

Headmasters and Armenians voice opposition

Meanwhile, Turkish-French schools in Turkey voiced their opposition to the bill that will be voted on in the French Parliament on Thursday in an announcement they gave to influential French newspapers such as Le Figaro and Le Monde on Wednesday.

In the announcement which addressed French parliamentarians, the headmasters of the Turkish-French schools -- including İstanbul Saint-Michel High School headmaster Jacques Augereau, İstanbul Notre Dame de Sion High School headmaster Yann de Lansalut, İstanbul Sainte-Pulchérie High School headmaster Pierre Gentric, İzmir Saint-Joseph High School headmaster Élisabeth Maire and İstanbul Saint-Joseph High School headmaster Jean-Michel Trica -- said they see the French bill as a political mistake which will lead to severe consequences.

Head of the Armenian community in Turkey Bedros Şirinoğlu is one opponent of the French “genocide bill.” Having lost his grandfather in the 1915 incidents, he said: “Tying Turks to the end of stick and beating them causes pain to both sides. I am personally very saddened by the ongoing developments. What does France want to accomplish?”

Şirinoğlu said that although his own grandfather was killed in the 1915 incidents, he does not believe that the incidents amount to genocide.

“You cannot make anyone to accept the term ‘genocide' by force, and I do not believe that those incidents were genocide,” he told Today's Zaman.

Garo Paylan, an administrator at the Armenian foundation in Turkey, also expressed his disapproval of the French “genocide bill,” saying the incidents of 1915 are a matter between Turkey and Armenia and should not interest other countries.

“I don't think Sarkozy is truly empathizing with us,” said Paylan.