Turkish PM Yildirim Says German Vote on Armenian Killings "Ridiculous"
TEHRAN (Tasnim) – Turkish Prime Minister Binali Yildirim said Wednesday a resolution expected to be approved by German lawmakers declaring the 1915 mass killings of Armenians a genocide was "ridiculous" and would damage ties between the two countries.
German lawmakers are expected Thursday to back the symbolic resolution on the massacre of up to 1.5 million Armenians by Ottoman Turkish forces a century ago. Turkey strongly rejects the notion that the killings constituted genocide.
The vote had been scheduled to take place over a year ago, on the 100th anniversary of the massacre, but German Chancellor Angela Merkel's allies in parliament pushed it back repeatedly out of concern that it could hurt relations with Ankara.
Now they have run out of time and may be wishing they had let the vote take place sooner, Reuters reported.
The opposition Greens have pushed the resolution onto the agenda at an extremely awkward time for Merkel, the driving force behind an agreement between the EU and Ankara that has helped slash the number of illegal migrants entering Europe.
