Denial of the Armenian Genocide ... what more excuses can Turkey come up with?

(IHT) - Turkey warns US on Armenian genocide resolution

ANKARA, Turkey: Turkey's foreign minister says a resolution by the U.S. Congress calling killings by Ottoman Turks genocide could harm his country's efforts to improve ties with Armenia.

Ali Babacan says that Turkey and Armenia are already discussing the 1915 killings and "steps that could be taken by third countries on the issue would not bring any good but harm this process." He spoke Wednesday.

Babacan says "we hope parliamentarians, parliaments become aware of this process and act responsibly."

The resolution introduced Tuesday could undermine efforts by President Barack Obama to win help on key foreign policy goals from NATO ally Turkey. Obama will visit Turkey early April.

It was unclear whether the resolution has sufficient support to pass in the House of Representatives.

Marios Matsakis on Turkish Troops (Video)

A brief speech by Cypriot Member of the European Parliament Marios Matsakis on the role of NATO in the security architecture of the EU (transcript below):

Marios Matsakis: Madam President, NATO is the backbone of European defence, and we do rely on NATO forces for the security of our Union. But NATO forces in Cyprus – Turkish NATO forces – are not a force of freedom, but one of occupation: occupation of EU territory. These Turkish forces not only have they caused death and destruction to the island when Turkey invaded in 1974, but they today continue to keep an EU Member State divided, causing fear and oppression to both Greek and Turkish Cypriots and obstructing the current negotiations between the two Community leaders on the island.

So, in discussing NATO’s important role in European defence, it is fair to remember that the EU has not yet put the necessary pressure on Turkey to get its NATO invasion army out of Cyprus unconditionally and immediately. Don't you agree with me, Mr Solana? Perhaps he is not listening. Don't you agree that the Turkish army should leave Cyprus immediately, Mr Solana? Thank you.

Mean Machine

(Click image to enlarge)

Photo of Petter Solberg from Norway and his co-driver Philip Mills driving their Citroen Xsara during the Cyprus rally WRC. The Rally of Cyprus has just finished with Loeb coming in first, driving a Citroen C4, finishing 27.2 seconds clear of second-place finisher Mikko Hirvonen of Finland in a Ford Focus with Petter Solberg of Norway in third-place finish.

Stolen Harvest

A group of Turkish settlers accompanied by Turkish troops trespassed into a Greek Cypriot farm today and stole harvested wheat.

The violation of it all eats at you:

Bodies Found in a Mass Grave

The eight coffins with remains of Ioannis, 77, Christina, 68, Michalis Michael, 42, Margarita, 48, with her daughters Eleni, 25, Cristina, 23, and Iliada, 18, and the two year old Loukas, are seen in a Greek Orthodox church during a funeral service in Nicosia, Cyprus, Sunday, March 8, 2009. The remains of Liassis and Michael family were discovered in a mass grave near the village of Palekythro where they, according to eyewitness accounts, were killed during the 1974 Turkish invasion.

ECHR Ruled Turkey had Violated Property Rights

ECHR ruled Tuesday that Turkey had violated the property rights of a Greek Orthodox foundation on the Aegean island of Bozcaada (Tenedos) by seizing its land and ordered the government of Turkey to pay damages.

The ECHR judgment itself is available only in French, but the Court's press release in English can be found here.

A snippet from the Court's press release below:

The Court held unanimously that there had been a violation of Article 1 of Protocol No. 1 (protection of property) of the European Convention on Human Rights, on account of the refusal of the Turkish courts to register the immovable property of the applicant foundation in the land register in its name.

Under Article 41 (just satisfaction) of the Convention, the Court awarded the applicant 100,000 euros (EUR) in respect of pecuniary damage and EUR 5,000 for costs and expenses.