The European Parliament held a session on April 3 dedicated to the 110th anniversary of the Armenian Genocide while paying serious attention to the forced displacement of ethnic Armenians from Nagorno-Karabakh.
According to Armenpress, many European MEPs drew explicit parallels between the historical tragedy and the events of recent years, highlighting the dangerous consequences of Turkey and Azerbaijan’s failure to bear historical responsibility.
“Recognition and reconciliation require courage to confront the past and build the future on historical truth. This is especially important today when hundreds of thousands of people have been forced to leave Nagorno-Karabakh as a result of Azerbaijani atrocities,” said Miriam Lexman of the EPP group. Yannis Maniatis of the Progressive Alliance of Socialists and Democrats recalled his family’s tragic experience in the Ottoman Empire.
“The lack of memory and recognition leads to the repetition of the past. The events in Nagorno-Karabakh are a painful reminder of today,” he stressed. Another MEP, Nicolas Bey, criticized the ongoing policies of Turkey and Azerbaijan, noting that Turkey has been trying to annex Armenian lands for 110 years. He also called on the EU to increase pressure on Turkey to acknowledge its past crimes.
Greens MEP Marketa Gregorova said the EU could not continue to look the other way when it was convenient. “Let’s support Armenia, the last democracy in the region,” she added.
MEPs also strongly criticized the EU’s continued cooperation with Azerbaijan, especially regarding gas supplies and maintaining the memorandum of understanding signed with Baku.
“Genocide denial must not be tolerated.”It is directly related to the injustices and violence of our time,” said Marie Toussaint, emphasizing that history repeats itself, this time in different ways but with the same impunity.
The EAFJD organization thanked those European parliamentarians who honored the memory of the victims of the Armenian Genocide and, at the same time, raised the protection of the rights of Armenians forcibly displaced from Nagorno-Karabakh.
The organization’s president also criticized the EU executive for not using the term “genocide” and not showing due respect. During the session, European lawmakers reaffirmed that the ethnic cleansing that took place in Nagorno-Karabakh is unacceptable and called on the EU to adopt a principled foreign policy that puts human rights and international law above economic interests.
