Turkey’s ambassador to France back to Paris

YEREVAN, January 10, /ARKA/. Turkey's ambassador to France, Tahsin Burcuoglu has returned to Paris, it was confirmed Monday, 19 days after being recalled to Ankara following the French National Assembly approving a bill criminalizing the denial of Armenian genocide, Nouvelles d’Armenie reported.

A spokesman for Turkey's Foreign Ministry confirmed that Burcuoglu had flown back to France on Saturday. The ambassador is now expected to lead Turkey's efforts in lobbying against the bill being passed by the French senate, the next step before it can be passed into law, Novosti Armenia reported.

Reports last week said the French government is planning to hurry through the adoption of the bill making it a crime to deny that Armenians suffered genocide, at the risk of incurring further sanctions from Turkey. 

The bill was adopted by the lower house of parliament on December 22, prompting a furious reaction from Turkey, which recalled its ambassador. If the bill passes the French Senate, as is expected, people who deny that the mass killings of Armenians by Ottoman Turks during World War I constituted genocide will face a one-year jail term and a fine of up to EUR 45 000.

The Armenian genocide was recognized by many states. The first was Uruguay that did so in 1965. Other countries are Russia France, Italy, Germany, the Netherlands, Belgium, Poland, Lithuania, Slovakia, Sweden, Switzerland, Greece, Cyprus, Lebanon, Canada, Venezuela, Argentina, 42 states in the United States, also the Vatican, European Parliament and the World Council of Churches. -0-