Turkey mulls peace with France if Genocide stance altered

PanARMENIAN.Net - Turkey said it could consider lifting the eight-article sanctions imposed on France, depending on the stance the new French administration takes on the Armenian Genocide issue, Hurriyet Daily News reported.

Speaking of the French presidential candidates’ election promises to revive the country’s Genocide Denial law, which was annulled by the French Constitutional Court of France, Foreign Ministry spokesperson Selcuk Unal told reporters at his weekly press conference: “Of course we should look at those statements and monitor further phases. We have to wait for France to form a new government.” “The steps the French government takes will be the arbiter in our plans,” Unal added. “The situation our bilateral relations are in today does not suit the strong history of French-Turkish ties,” Unal said.

"If France acts in what the Turkish government considers as an appropriate manner, Turkey is ready both to strengthen bilateral ties and to work closely with France on international issues affecting Europe’s future," Unal said, adding that Ankara also expects that the new French administration will open the five chapters of Turkey’s EU membership negotiations that have been frozen by France.

On January 23, the French Senate passed the bill criminalizing the Armenian Genocide denial with 127 votes for and 86 against. The bill stipulated for 45,000 euro fine and a year in prison for anyone in France who denies this crime against humanity committed by the Ottoman Empire.

Turkey reacted furiously when the Senate approved the law. Ankara halted political and military cooperation with France and was threatening to cut off economic and cultural ties if the law took effect.

On February 28, the French Constitutional Council ruled the bill as unconstitutional.

Then President Nicolas Sarkozy pledged to submit a new Genocide bill in June 2012 if re-elected for a new term.