January 27, 2007 - 15:29 AMT
Turkish Foreign Minister warns "France is following wrong path"
Meeting with his French counterpart in Paris on Thursday, Turkish Foreign Minister Abdullah Gul expressed criticisms and concerns about the French Parliament's passage of a bill last October to penalize people who question the Armenian Genocide claims. "France is following the wrong path in relations with Turkey," Gul told French Foreign Minister Douste-Blazy on the sidelines of the International Donors Conference held in Paris. "The French Parliament's passage of the Armenian bill was in nobody's interest," he said. Underlining the damage done to relations between Ankara and Paris by the passage of the Armenian bill, Gul said, "Relations with France could have been better." The New Anatolian reports.

On October of 2006 the French Parliament adopted a law on criminal responsibility for denying the Armenian Genocide, which foresee 45 000 euros fine. The law must be approved by the Senate and the president of the country.