Turkey condemns French declaration of national day to mark Armenian genocide

Turkey on Wednesday condemned French President Emmanuel Macron’s decision to declare April 24 a day of commemoration of the Armenian genocide, Reuters reported.

“We condemn and reject attempts by Mr Macron, who is facing political problems in his own country, to save the day by turning historic events into political material,” Turkish presidential spokesman Ibrahim Kalın said in a statement, according to Reuters.

French President Emmanuel Macron on Tuesday declared April 24 as a commemoration day, pointing out that France was among the first nations to denounce “the murderous hunt of the Armenian people in the Ottoman Empire.”

In 2001, France officially recognized the Armenian Genocide, which has been a source of recurring tension between Turkey and European Union.

Turkey accepts that many Armenians living in the Ottoman Empire were killed in clashes with Ottoman forces during World War One, but contests the figures and denies the killings were systematically orchestrated and constitute a genocide.