President: Erdogan’s decision to mark Battle of Gallipoli on April 24 cynical

PanARMENIAN.Net - In an interview with FRANCE 24, Armenian President Serzh Sargsyan said Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s decision to change this year’s Gallipoli commemoration to coincide with Armenia’s marking of the 100th anniversary of the Genocide was a “cynical act”, the news website reports.

“Our intention was to commemorate the centennial together with the Turkish people,” explained Sargsyan, noting that it was the reason his government invited the Turkish leader to attend the commemorations.

Instead, Erdogan chose the same day to invite his Armenian counterpart to the centennial of the Gallipoli campaign, which marked a major World War I victory for the Ottoman forces against Allied troops, mostly from Australia and New Zealand. The date of their landing -- known as “Anzac Day” -- is marked on April 25 every year.

Erdogan’s decision to change the date of the Gallipoli ceremonies to coincide with the Armenian centennial commemoration has drawn a sharp rebuke from Sargsyan.

“Unfortunately, once again we find ourselves facing a negationist approach and I’m sorry to use this expression, but it is a particularly cynical act. The Battle of Gallipoli did not start on April 24 [1915], nor did it end on April 24, it’s self-evident. This is a way of injuring, of wounding the Armenian people and at the same time, it is intended to set obstacles on the path to centennial commemorations [of the Armenian Genocide],” said Sargsyan.

The April 24 ceremonies will be attended by a number of world leaders, including French President François Hollande and Russian President Vladimir Putin.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan sent official invitations to more than 100 world leaders, including Armenian President Serzh Sargsyan, to take part in the ceremonies dedicated to 100th anniversary of the Gallipoli Campaign of World War I. The date designated for these commemoration events—April 24—created uproar among Armenians worldwide, while Turkish human rights groups urged world leaders to boycott the Gallipoli events.

On Jan. 16, Sargsyan responded to Erdogan’s invitation to Turkey in a strongly worded letter. “Turkey continues its conventional denial policy and is perfecting its instrumentation for distorting history. This time, Turkey is marking the 100th anniversary of the Battle of Gallipoli on April 24, even though the battle began on March 18, 1915 and lasted until late January 1916, while the Allies’ operation started on April 25,” he wrote, adding, “What is the purpose [of this] if not to distract the world’s attention from the 100th anniversary of the Armenian Genocide?”