We Do Not Take Armenian Allegations As Serious, Sahin

BEIJING - ''We do not take Armenian allegations as serious'', Turkish State Minister & Deputy Prime Minister Mehmet Ali Sahin said on Tuesday.
Answering questions of Turkish reporters during his stay in Chinese capital of Beijing, Sahin said, ''we do not take these allegations as serious because they contradict historical realities. This can be considered as a political maneuver of some Armenian organizations against Turkey. These are initiatives aiming at causing difficulties for Turkey and Turkish nation, and gaining results. As the Turkish parliament and government, we have launched initiatives against these.''
''Our archives are open, and we open them to any one who wants to examine them. We have suggested that we set up a commission to examine the archives and share the results with the world. We are not afraid of anything,'' added Sahin.
EU MEMBERSHIP
Touching on European Union (EU) membership bid of Turkey, Sahin said, ''Turkey has fulfilled not only Copenhagen political criteria but also Maastricht economic criteria so far, and will continue to do so on its road to EU.''