100th anniversary of the Armenian Genocide

His reaction was at least provocative as one day before the 107th anniversary of the Armenian Genocide by Turkey

I happened to be in Beirut last week. It was a good chance to catch up with Lebanese and regional politics and see friends. Besides, I could follow the Armenian Genocide commemoration. It was a sad week for Lebanon to mark two tragic events, since it also marked the 40th anniversary of the Lebanese civil war. 

Russian President Vladimir Putin and French President François Hollande, who have both named the killing of Armenians at the hands of the Ottoman Empire during World War I "genocide," attended ceremonies at the Tsitsernakaberd memorial complex in Yerevan April 24 commemorating the tragedy in 1915.

Yerevan is prepared to normalize its relations with Ankara without any preconditions, Armenian President Serzh Sargsyan has said ahead of April 24, "Genocide Remembrance Day" for Armenians.

YEREVAN - Serbia understands the suffering of the Armenians that began on April 24, 1915 because the people of Serbia were victims of genocide committed against them in World War II, Serbian MP Aleksandar Cotric said during a global panel against the crime of genocide held in Yerevan.

The pope's use of the G-word and then the European Parliament's vote to urge Turkey to recognize the "Armenian Genocide" angered not only the president and the government, but also the nationalist opposition and a majority of Turks. 

As a long-time diplomatic correspondent, I have closely followed Turkey?s diplomatic struggle against world-wide efforts for the recognition of the Armenian genocide. An overall analysis would openly put that Turkey failed in its efforts to take an efficient stand against very well-orchestrated campaigns of the Armenian diaspora and the state of Armenia. 

The European Parliament is set to discuss and vote on a resolution April 15 on the claims of genocide about the mass killings of Armenians at the hands of Ottomans a century ago, turning up the heat on the debates before a ceremony in Armenia on April 24.  

The head of Turkey?s top religious body has criticized Pope Francis? description of the mass killings of Armenians in the Ottoman Empire as ?genocide,? arguing that the Vatican is influenced by ?political lobbies and PR firms.?

Turkey's ambassador to the Vatican, Mehmet Paçac? returned to Ankara late April 12, after Ankara's strong reaction against Pope Francis' description of the mass killings of Armenians at the hands of the Ottoman Empire as genocide.