The German parliamentary resolution titled “Remembrance and commemoration of the genocide of Armenians and other Christian minorities in 1915 and 1916” may only be a symbolic act with no legal effect but the Turkish authorities are wrong to dismiss it as \u201cnull and void\u201d, and resorting to hateful comments to whip up Turkish nationalist sentiments at home.<\/p>\n
The resolution, approved by a near-unanimous support from all parties in Germany differs from the previous recognitions by 26 other countries.<\/p>\n
For the first time, it explicitly underlines Germany\u2019s role as the Ottoman Empire\u2019s military ally and accepts German complicity in turning a blind eye to Ottoman deportations and massacres of Armenians, \u201cdespite having clear information\u201d at the time.<\/p>\n
It emphasizes that the aim is not to blame \u201cthe current generation of Turks\u201d <\/strong>but to encourage acknowledgement of \u201cthe darker moments in their nation’s history\u201d. <\/strong>It expresses a hope to facilitate a revival of the reconciliation process between Turkey and Armenia.<\/p>\n However painful and damaging the German resolution may be perceived by an equally overwhelming majority in Turkey, it must be met with a measured and statesman-like response.<\/p>\n Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu\u2019s instant rebuke by saying \u201cThe way to close dark pages in Germany\u2019s own history is not to defame the history of other countries with irresponsible and baseless parliament decisions,\u201d <\/strong>cannot be described as such.<\/p>\n One of Turkey\u2019s most senior diplomats, its ambassador to Washington D.C, Serdar Kilic, posted a Twitter message minutes after the vote and addressing the Germans as \u201cfeckless\u201d, he has asked whether they thought they would get away with their own two \u2018real genocides\u2019 in forty years by accusing Turkey with one \u2018imagined\u2019 one.<\/p>\n Presidential chief advisor, a professor of constitutional law, Burhan Kuzu, has \u00a0raised the stakes further. Claiming the resolution was a reflection of German discomfort for Turkey\u2019s growth, he said<\/a> that the \u201cGerman infidels once again did what they knew best\u201d.<\/p>\n As for the new Prime Minister Binali Yildirim, his earlier comment claiming that the events of the 1915 were \u2018the kind of things that could have happened anywhere, in any country during a war\u2019 was truly disgraceful. After the vote in the Bundestag, Mr. Yildirim has qualified his strong condemnation of Germany by saying that despite Germany\u2019s historical mistake, bilateral relations would continue.<\/p>\n In Germany, before the motion was put to vote, a vigorous debate had taken \u00a0place on whether the Parliament was the right place for passing judgement on another country\u2019s history.<\/p>\n