Erdogan goes back on his wordMarch 19, 2010 - 17:06 AMT PanARMENIAN.Net - Turkey's Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Friday defended his statements about deporting undocumented Armenian workers and criticized the media for misinterpreting his remarks.He said the media was wrong to compare Roma and Armenian citizens to illegal immigrants, saying his comments in London were distorted. Erdogan said Tuesday in an interview with the BBC Turkish service that illegal immigrants from Armenia would be expelled, sparking outrage among the opposition and media. Things are evaluated differently for citizens within the framework of the law, he said at the ruling Justice and Development Party, or AKP, headquarters on Friday, adding that citizens are different than people who reside in the country illegally. Erdogan said the foreign press had misinterpreted his definition of "illegal". He said he was not addressing Turkish citizens of Armenian descent. He criticized those asking for an apology. "We know very well who that apology should come from," he said. Erdogan made the threat after U.S. and Swedish lawmakers approved a resolution recognizing the Genocide of Armenians, Assyrians/Syrians/Chaldeans and Pontic Greeks. During his speech on Friday, Erdogan reminisced about Sunday's meeting with nearly 13,000 Roma in Istanbul. "The enthusiasm at this meeting did not wane for a moment," he said. "The Roma citizens are my citizens, and they have not benefited from citizenship laws for the last 10 years," he said. "We will fix these problems. If there is a need to apologize to them, I will apologize to them now in the name of the Turkish state. "The Roma are not a minority but an essential element in this country," he said, Hurriyet Daily News reported. Top stories Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev arrived in Moscow on April 22 to hold talks with Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin. 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". Partner news | Get Started: An educational platform for young startuppers The Get Started program which operates in two phases is an important platform for young startuppers. Byblos Bank Armenia celebrates Students' Day with scholarship recipients YSU students who received scholarships from Byblos Bank Armenia gathered in a casual setting to meet with the Bank's CEO, Hayk Stepanyan. Azerbaijan extends Rune Vardanyan’s arrest by 5 months A court in Azerbaijan has extended the arrest of former Nagorno-Karabakh leader Ruben Vardanyan by five months. Armenia border residents dissatisfied with delimitation Residents Kirants are dissatisfied with the results of the delimitation of the border between Armenia and Azerbaijan. |