US Floats NATO-Russia Council Revival in Bid to Resolve Ukraine War
The United States has floated the idea of resuming the NATO-Russia Council as part of a broader effort to resolve the conflict in Ukraine
Armenia marks on Friday the centenary of the mass killings of Ottoman Armenians with commemorative ceremonies across the country.
Flowers were laid and a minute of silence was observed at the Armenian Genocide Memorial near Yerevan, the BBC reports.
Armenian President Serzh Sargsyan expressed his gratitude to those attending the commemorative ceremony, who reaffirmed their commitment to human values.
Among the world leaders attending the commemorative ceremony near Yerevan are Russian President Vladimir Putin and his French counterpart Francois Hollande.
German President Joachim Gauck described the killings as genocide on Thursday, while his US counterpart Barack Obama issued a carefully worded statement, refraining to use the term.
Turkey, which denies that the mass killings carried out by the Ottoman Empire constituted a genocide, will also hold a commemorative ceremony to pay tribute to the Armenian victims.
Turkey will also host parallel ceremonies on Friday, which will mark the centenary of the Battle of Gallipoli.
However Armenian President Sargsyan accused Turkey of diverting the world attention from the Yerevan commemorations as the Battle of Gallipoli actually had started on April 25.
April 24 commemorates the arrest of Armenian intellectuals by the Ottoman authorities in Constantinople in 1915, most of whom were later killed, and marks the beginning of the mass extermination of Christian Armenians.
On the eve of the centenary on Thursday, the Armenian Church canonised what it describes as the 1.5 million victims of the mass killings.
The West has renewed calls on Turkey to recognise the mass killings as constituting a genocide, a claim which Ankara has consistently denied.
Pope Francis recently described the killings as “the first genocide of the 20th century”, while the European Parliament adopted a resolution calling on Turkey to recognise the crimes as genocide.
Turkish Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu paid tribute to the victims, but refrained from describing the events as constituting a genocide.
Turkey maintains that the number of the victims is exaggerated and many Ottoman Armenians were killed in clashes during the First World War.
The United States has floated the idea of resuming the NATO-Russia Council as part of a broader effort to resolve the conflict in Ukraine
Estonian Foreign Minister Margus Tsahkna has accused a Russian fighter jet of violating NATO territory after the Estonian Navy attempted to intercept a tanker believed to be
The Turkish Foreign Ministry has denied claims by Russia regarding a scheduled meeting between Russian and Ukrainian representatives
At least 80 people have been killed in Israeli airstrikes across Gaza, according to reports from hospitals and first responders
U.S. President Donald Trump has stated that he might still travel to Istanbul for the potential Russia-Ukraine peace negotiations on May 16 if progress is seen toward a deal
US President Donald Trump will not attend the talks between Russia and Ukraine scheduled to take place in Türkiye on May 15
Google Street View Cars Return to Bulgaria for Major Mapping Update
Housing Prices Soar in Bulgaria’s Major Cities as Demand and Supply Strain Increase