Speakers of the Armenian diaspora with extreme views have currently targeted a statement of the Armenian President, displaying once again without giving any room for doubt that their approach towards Turkey is not for reconciliation, but to take revenge, to accuse Turkey and to start a legal process where they could bring their multiple claims of retribution from Turkey to the agenda. Details of this new clash are as follows:

At an election rally on February 5th at the capital city, Yerevan, the Armenian President has said the following: “the words ‘genocide’ and Meds Yyeghern’ (meaning ‘Great Tragedy’ in Armenian) are the same and even by not pronouncing the word ‘genocide,’ the U.S. President has said everything”. The Armenian President has made this statement as the interpretation to US President refraining from using the word genocide in recent years despite diaspora’s demands and pressures and instead describing the 1915 events as a Great Tragedy in Armenian.

These statements and interpretation of the President of Armenia has drawn widespread criticisms from the speakers of the diaspora in the US of americans of armenian origin with extreme views and in fact, has reached the point of accusation and defamation. Speakers of the diaspora have emphasized that the definition of Great Tragedy being equivalent to genocide for the Armenian community cannot be denied, but that this definition has no place in international law, whereas the recognition of the word genocide would bring a series of political and legal reflections to the agenda. Thus, they have gone as far to mark the President with peasantry, ignorance and irresponsibility for his words.

Unfortunately it seems very difficult for Turkey-Armenia relations to normalize under the existence and guidance of such a diaspora with overwhelming influence on Armenia. All parties desiring the normalization of relations between Turkey and Armenia need first of all take into consideration the presence of such a vindictive and destructive element for a beginning of steps to be taken.