Turkish diplomats hold 'major meeting' to discuss Armenian Cause

The third conference of Turkish Ambassadors which brought together around 150 Turkish diplomats accredited to different countries focused on such issues as the Armenian Genocide, Armenian-Turkish rapprochement and the activities of ASALA, says Turkish journalist Utku Cakirozer in an article published on the official website of the Ankara-based Center for Eurasian Strategic Studies (MIT).

"Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu and senior Foreign Ministry officials were invitied to Ankara to exchange views on Turkey's foreign policy in the years to come. The key issue at the conference was the Armenian Cause. Another agenda issue concerned ASALA's threats sent to the Turkish embassies in the United States, Canada and various European countries," Cakirozer says.

"The message was sent right after December 22, the date the US House of Repreesentatives failed to bring the Armenian Genocide resolution to Congress. Turkish ambassadors notified of this message to the authorities of the states they were accredited to, calling on them to intensify the security measures of their diplomatic reprsentations. And the security council session held on the sidelines of the conference also addressed the topic," Cakirozer says.

Underlining that the Diaspora is undertaking serious preparatory activities in the run-up of the 100th anniversary of the Armenian Genocide, the Turkish analyst adds that Ankara is very mixed up and has not yet elaborated counter-measures against the Armenian Genocide campaign.

"At the meeting in Ankara, the ambassadors discussed several steps towards killing the pro-Armenian plans. But no specific decision on the topic was actually reached. It was proposed that Turkey too, shoot a film on the 1915 events as an attempt to launch a counter-attack. The issue on normalizing ties with Armenia was also addressed several times at the conference.

Several Turkish ambassadors called for repealing the protocols with Armenia. Some suggested that Ankara take a tougher stance on the international recognition of the Armenian Genocide and issue specific warnings," the author says, adding that the Armenian Genocide issue will remain in Turkey's foreign policy agenda until 2015.