Event dated to 95th anniversary of Armenian Genocide held in Moscow

April 20, 2010 - 10:16 AMT

PanARMENIAN.Net - An event dated to the 95th anniversary of the Armenian Genocide in the Ottoman Empire was held in Nekrasov central town library of Moscow.

The event was organized by Ararat Cultural Union and Culture Department of Moscow.

Senior official of the Armenian Embassy to Russia Robert Ananyan emphasized in his remarks that recognition and condemnation of the Genocide will make it possible to prevent such tragedies in the future.

Political Science Ph.D. Alexander Svarants, Chairman of the Russian-Armenian Cooperation NGO Yuri Navoyan and Deputy Chairman of the Russian Union of Cooperation and Friendship with Armenia Vladimir Osipov also delivered speeches.

Prominent Armenian and Russian politicians, science, art and culture workers attended the event, RA MFA press service reported.

The Armenian Genocide

The Armenian Genocide (1915-23) was the deliberate and systematic destruction of the Armenian population of the Ottoman Empire during and just after World War I. It was characterized by massacres and deportations, involving forced marches under conditions designed to lead to the death of the deportees, with the total number of deaths reaching 1.5 million.

The majority of Armenian Diaspora communities were formed by the Genocide survivors.

Present-day Turkey denies the fact of the Armenian Genocide, justifying the atrocities as “deportation to secure Armenians”. Only a few Turkish intellectuals, including Nobel Prize winner Orhan Pamuk and scholar Taner Akcam, speak openly about the necessity to recognize this crime against humanity.

The Armenian Genocide was recognized by Uruguay, Russia, France, Lithuania, Italy, 45 U.S. states, Greece, Cyprus, Lebanon, Argentina, Belgium, Austria, Wales, Switzerland, Canada, Poland, Venezuela, Chile, Bolivia, the Vatican, Luxembourg, Brazil, Germany, the Netherlands, Paraguay, Sweden, Venezuela, Slovakia, Syria, Vatican, as well as the European Parliament and the World Council of Churches.