Turkey announces sanctions against France over Genocide billDecember 22, 2011 - 20:46 AMT PanARMENIAN.Net - Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan announced a raft of political and military sanctions on Dec 22 after French lawmakers approved a bill making it a crime to deny Armenian Genocide. Turkey will recall its ambassador from Paris and suspend mutual political visits as well as joint military projects, including joint exercises, Erdogan said. "From now on we are revising our relations with France." Most of the sanctions imposed on France, a NATO ally, will be in the military sphere. Turkey will now decide on a case-by-case on every military demand made by EU member France to use Turkish airspace and military bases, Erdogan said, and will from now on reject any French demand for its military vessels to dock at Turkish ports. Erdogan said Turkey would boycott a joint economic committee meeting in Paris in January and would not take part in twinning projects with France, AFP reported. “Sarkozy's steps, based on political gain, will seriously damage relations between Turkey and France,” Erdogan said. On December 22, French National Assembly passed the bill criminalizing the Armenian Genocide denial. The number of votes ‘in favor’ and ‘against’ is not announced yet. The vote followed the December 7 decision by the Judiciary Committee of the National Assembly to adopt the bill introduced by MP Valerie Boyer (UMP). The draft law envisages a year in jail and a fine of 45,000 euros for those who publicly deny the Armenian Genocide in France. Turkey has piled pressure on France to drop the law ahead of the vote, with President Abdullah Gul and a Turkish delegation to Paris warning its adoption will spark a diplomatic crisis and have economic consequences. Top stories Authorities said a total of 192 Azerbaijani troops were killed and 511 were wounded during Azerbaijan’s offensive. In 2023, the Azerbaijani government will increase the country’s defense budget by more than 1.1 billion manats ($650 million). The bill, published on Monday, is designed to "eliminate the shortcomings of an unreasonably broad interpretation of the key concept of "compatriot". The earthquake caused a temporary blackout, damaged many buildings and closed a number of rural roads. Partner news | Czech-Armenian military cooperation discussed in Yerevan A delegation led by the Director General for the Industrial Cooperation Division of the Ministry of Defence of the Czech Republic visited Armenia. U.S. welcomes efforts to define Armenia-Azerbaijan border The United States welcomes efforts to define the border between Armenia and Azerbaijan, says Vedant Patel. Biden honors resilience of Armenian people on April 24 U.S. President Joe Biden has issued a statement on the 109th anniversary of the Armenian Genocide. Ex-Karabakh leader moved to solitary confinement cell in Baku, his son says David Vardanyan is the son of former Karabakh leader Ruben Vardanyan who who is currently imprisoned in Azerbaijan. |