YEREVAN (A.W.)—The Euronest Parliamentary Assembly on March 17 adopted a resolution calling on Turkey to reconcile with its past and recognize the Armenian Genocide. The resolution was adopted by the 4th ordinary session of the Euronest Parliamentary Assembly, which began in Yerevan this week.
According to a statement released by the European Armenian Federation for Justice and Democracy (EAFJD), the resolution stressed that denial is the “final stage of genocide and that the absences of unequivocal and timely condemnation of the Armenian Genocide largely contributed to the failure to prevent future crimes against humanity.” The resolution also mentions declarations on “crimes against humanity” and the Armenian Genocide that have been adopted by the European Union (EU), the United Nations (UN), and other international bodies.
The EAFJD welcomed the resolution, which reaffirmed Europe’s intolerance of genocides, “crimes against humanity,” and denial. “This is yet another blow to Turkey’s state denial policy, and a call to recognize the Armenian Genocide and reconcile with its past. Having in mind the format of the Euronest, this is a big achievement by the Armenian delegation,” said Kaspar Karampetian, president of the EAFJD.
“Due to the coordinated efforts of the Armenian delegation, the Republic of Armenia Embassy in Belgium, the European Friends of Armenia, and the EAFJD, this resolution was adopted in Yerevan today. This resolution sends a positive signal to the European Parliament as well, which will vote on a resolution on the Centennial of the Armenian Genocide on April 15,” said Karampetian.
Assembly co-chair Boris Tarasyuk offered to pay respects to the memory of Vahan Hovhannisyan, the former head of the Armenian delegation to Euronest and a longtime leader of the Armenian Revolutionary Federation, who passed away on Dec. 28, 2014. “Vahan Hovhannisyan was a professional, charismatic, steadfast, and flexible individual,” said Tarasyuk.
The resolution also comes less than a week after the European Parliament (EP) called on EU member states to recognize the Armenian Genocide. The EP on March 12 adopted the Annual Report on Human Rights and Democracy in the World 2013 and the EU policy on the matter; Article 77 of that policy “calls, ahead of the 100th anniversary of the Armenian Genocide, on all the member states to legally acknowledge it, and encourages the member states and the EU institutions to contribute further to its recognition.”
The Euronest Parliamentary Assembly is a parliamentary forum to promote political association and further economic integration between EU and the Eastern European Partners (Armenia, Azerbaijan, Georgia, Moldova, and Ukraine). Euronest’s mission is to contribute to the strengthening, development, and visibility of the Eastern Partnership, as the institution responsible for parliamentary consultation, supervision, and monitoring.
The Euronest Parliamentary Assembly consists of the European Parliament delegation and the Eastern European Partners’ delegations.
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