PACE president blames Sarkozy for possible chill in France-Turkey relationsDecember 19, 2011 - 11:19 AMT PanARMENIAN.Net - President of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) Mevlut Cavusoglu puts “responsibility” for the possible adoption of the bill criminalizing the Armenian Genocide denial by the French parliament on President Nicolas Sarkozy. “Should this bill be approved, Sarkozy will be personally liable both to the history and for deterioration of French-Turkish relations. It’s apparent that he minded the narrow interest of his own party rather than France when introducing this bill,” Turkish media quoted Cavusoglu as saying. The statesman argued that Turkey is not a country to become a subject of pre-election debates in any country. “Turkey is a strong country which is capable to stand up for itself. History will show who will suffer greater loss, but definitely that will not be Turkey,” he said. A draft law envisaging a one-year prison sentence and 45,000 euro fine for denying the Armenian Genocide is due to go before French parliament this week. 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 | Mirzoyan says meeting with Bayramov was “constructive” At the moment, Ararat Mirzoyan said, there is no basis for additional comments. OSCE vows support for Armenia “in all three directions of security” Achieving stable peace between Armenia and Azerbaijan remains a priority of the OSCE, said Ian Borg. 151 detained as civil disobedience campaigns continue in Yerevan Citizens have been blocking streets in the Armenian capital, demanding Nikol Pashinyan’s resignation. France welcomes Armenia-Azerbaijan meeting in Almaty France has welcomed the new round of negotiations between the foreign ministers of Armenia and Azerbaijan. |