ANKARA (AA) - The final statement on the ''First International Symposium on Armenian Allegations and Azerbaijan Reality,'' organized at the Capital Teachers' Home, has been announced today. The statement said, after encouragement by British historian Andrew Mango, that ''Armenians want to cover up their occupation of Azerbaijan and the massacre they are doing by spreading their lies and implementing an anti-Turkish campaign.''
Eurasia Strategic Researches Center (ASAM) Armenian Researches Institute Chairman retired ambassador Omer Engin Lutem has evaluated a possible decision to open the Turkey-Armenia border crossing.
Lutem indicated that Armenia currently does not need the Kars border crossing open. ''Armenia does trade with Russia and meets its energy requirements with the help of the Russians,'' told Lutem.
Lutem remarked that Armenia brings up the issue of border crossing in order to leave Turkey in a difficult position vis-a-vis EU and ruin Turkey's ties with Azerbaijan. ''There is immense pressure on Turkey, put by the U.S. and EU, since the beginning of the twenty-first century for the opening of the border crossing,'' commented Lutem.
The final statement read:
''Turkey was the side defending itself. Russia, Britain and France used the Armenians as puppets and armed the Armenians to reach their goals. The three countries motivated Armenians to uprise and attack the Ottoman Turkish army. The Ottoman government reacted by re-locating a certain portion of the Armenian population to provinces in the south of the empire. What took place was re-location but definitely not a genocide. Many Muslim Turks were killed by Armenians at the time. Some Armenians died due to poverty, famine and hunger. In the past two centuries, thousands of Azeri Turks have been butchered by Armenians. Armenia must immediately withdraw its troops from the occupied Azeri territory.''
(SOL-A֩
2005-05-06