Washington's ambassador to Ankara was summoned to the Turkish Foreign Ministry following the US President Joe Biden’s recognition of the "Armenian genocide."
The Turkish Foreign Ministry summoned US Ambassador to Turkey David Satterfield to protest US decision in this regard.
While condemning the US statement, Turkish Foreign Ministry said, “It is clear that this letter has no legal or scientific basis and also has no documentary support. Regarding the events in 1915, there is no requirement to use the term 'genocide', as stipulated in international law."
The statement added that the European Court of Human Rights had also confirmed the "controversial" nature of events occurred in 1915, in which Turkey proposed to Armenia in 2005 for setting up a joint historical commission to investigate the historical facts in this respect.
"Although Armenia never responded to the offer, it is still on the table. In this regard, the statements made by the US President, who has neither the legal nor the moral authority to judge historical events, are worthless,” Turkish Foreign Ministry continued.
According to this report, Ankara said that the move adopted by the US government opened a long-standing wound in bilateral trust and friendship, adding, “We urge the President of the United States Joe Biden to redress this gross mistake, the mistake which is in the interest of no one but to serve the interests of some certain political circles."
The US President Biden has formally recognized the killings and deportations of hundreds of thousands of Armenians during the last years of the Ottoman Empire in the early 20th century as “genocide”.
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