Genocide Claims Offensive: Sezer

Claims that the Ottoman Empire had committed genocide against its Armenian citizens were offensive and hurt the Turkish nation, the country’s President said Thursday.
Addressing a conference at the Turkish War Academy in Istanbul, President Ahmet Necdet Sezer said scientific objectivity should be used when assessing historical events.
Research should be conducted into the allegations by making use of documents that were objective and unbiased, the President said.
Turkish citizens of Armenian origin were and indispensable part of Turkish society who have equal rights and responsibilities in the modern Turkish Republic, said Sezer.