California Legislators Announce Essay and Visual Arts Scholarships to Raise Awareness of the Armenian Genocide

Spokesperson for the Armenian Ministry of Foreign Affairs Anna Naghdalyan has responded to calls on cooperation for regional peace and stability by Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlüt Çavusoglu advising that Armenia “learn lessons,” from recent events. Çavusoglu’s comments were made during the provincial congress of “Justice and Development Party” in Antalya.

“As for the “advice to learn lessons from history”: no one has the right to speak disrespectfully with the language of threat and give lessons of history to the nation who survived genocide.

“Turkish authorities must clearly realize that a relevant environment of trust is needed for a dialogue, and the destruction of Armenian historical-cultural heritage definitely does not contribute to the establishment of such an environment,” Anna Naghdalyan said.

“A state which demonstrates such attitude towards historical-cultural monuments at least cannot be credible.” Naghdalyan stated.

“We strongly condemn the policy of consistent destruction and misappropriation of Armenian cultural heritage by the Turkish authorities that gained new momentum, and urge Turkey to strictly adhere to its obligations under the international agreements,” she added.

“We are familiar with reports in Turkish media about the sale of Armenian churches in Turkey. In particular, the Armenian Catholic Church in Sebtash district of Bursa was put up for sale for 6 million Turkish lira, while another Armenian church in Bursa was put for sale for 6,3 million Turkish lira. Moreover, the Armenian St. Toros Church in the western Turkish province of Kutahya was destroyed,” Naghdalyan said.