US embassy cable - 05ANKARA2189

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 ANKARA 002189 
 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL: 04/14/2015 
TAGS: TU, AM, PERL 
SUBJECT: TURKISH PARLIAMENT PRESSES ANTI-ARMENIAN GENOCIDE 
CAMPAIGN 
 
REF: ANKARA 1841 
 
(U) Classified by Political Counselor John Kunstadter, E.O. 
12958, reasons 1.4 (b) and (d). 
 
1.  (C) Summary:  The Turkish Parliament is pressing its 
campaign to tell the international community that there was 
no Armenian genocide.  PM Erdogan has sent a letter to 
Armenian President Kocharian asking that Armenian scholars 
participate in a joint Turkish/Armenian historical research 
project that the Turks believe will exonerate them.  The 
Turkish Parliament and public are prepared for no other 
result.  End Summary. 
 
Parliament Presses Turkey's Case 
-------------------------------- 
 
2.  (U) Turkey's Parliament is pressing its campaign launched 
in March to counter claims of Armenian genocide (reftel).  On 
April 13, PM Erdogan, FM Gul, and chief opposition party CHP 
leader Baykal attended a session of Parliament to "debate" 
the issue.  The result was not a debate, but instead, 
speeches in which Gul and CHP MP (and former Ambassador to 
the U.S.) Sukru Elekdag vied to outdo each other in denying 
Turkish wrongdoing.  Noting calls for Turkey to make peace 
with its history, Gul summarily trumpeted, "Turkey is at 
peace with its history." 
 
3.  (U) Gul announced Turkey is sending a letter to Armenian 
President Kocharian requesting Armenian scholars participate 
in a proposed joint historical research project which the 
Turks say will show there was no genocide.  Gul called for 
the Turkish government, bureaucracy, NGOs and press to 
participate in the "national cause" to make the truth known. 
 
A Selective Historical Approach 
------------------------------- 
 
4.  (U) Turkish Historical Society President Yusuf Halacoglu 
has begun a series of university lectures across Turkey 
presenting Turkey's historical argument.  Using selected 
documents, Halacoglu emphasizes Armenian anti-Ottoman 
activities in World War I; portrays as inflated claims of 
Armenian deaths, most of which he says were due to disease, 
not deliberate killing; and highlights Ottoman efforts to 
ameliorate the effects of Armenian deportations.  When 
Halacoglu made his presentation at Ankara's Cankaya 
University on April 11, most "questions" from the audience 
were expressions of outrage that Turkey could be blamed for 
any wrongdoing. 
 
5.  (U) Also on April 13, the Turkish General Staff announced 
it would publish selected documents about Armenian activity 
between 1914 and 1918.  According to press reports, the TGS 
will publish them in four volumes. 
 
An International Campaign Tailored for a Domestic Audience 
--------------------------------------------- ------------- 
 
6.  (C) The Turkish campaign is ostensibly aimed at 
international audiences but seems paradoxically tailored to 
appeal to domestic audiences.  The government is not 
preparing the Turkish public for concessions.  Publicly, 
there is no mention that an objective historical approach 
could do anything but totally exonerate Turkey.  One AKP MP 
who claimed to have thoroughly researched the Armenian 
question seemed stumped when we asked him what would happen 
if objective research led to a contrary result.  After 
several seconds' hesitation, all he could say was that would 
not be acceptable. 
 
No Comprehensive Approach 
------------------------- 
 
7.  (C) There is no sign of a comprehensive approach to 
Turkey's Armenia problem.  The MFA office charged with 
monitoring Armenian genocide allegations is part of the MFA's 
Security Affairs Directorate; the office in charge in Armenia 
is in the Caucasus regional bureau.  Our MFA contacts in the 
regional bureau have stoutly resisted our advice that 
improved relations with Armenia could dampen the drive for a 
genocide resolution.  Security Affairs Department Head Arda 
concedes that improved bilateral relations would give him 
ammunition against the drive for genocide resolutions, but 
his functional bureau has little clout. 
 
8.  (C) We see no change to Turkey's Armenia policy on the 
horizon:  in his April 13 Parliament speech, FM Gul 
reiterated that Armenian concessions on occupied territory, 
recognition of the border and dropping the genocide 
resolution campaign were sine qua nons to restoring 
diplomatic relations and open borders. 
9.  (C) The AKP government and Gul's MFA appear to have been 
taken by surprise by the campaign, which originated with the 
opposition CHP.  Arda speculated that AKP joined in out of 
concern that otherwise CHP would get the political upper 
hand; the MFA was only brought into the process thereafter. 
EDELMAN