Gerard Larcher, the head of the French Senate, expressed on Wednesday his full support for Turkey's recently launched Kurdish move and Armenia reconciliation process, saluting the country's improvements in the field of democratization.
“The normalization of relations between Turkey and France is important for us. We want to establish the future. The dialogue between the two people should be revived. The task of examining history should be left to historians,” Larcher told reporters at a joint press conference with Parliament Speaker Mehmet Ali Sahin.
Ties between France and Turkey were strained when France recognized the 1915 events between Turks and Armenians as genocide in 2000. The French Parliament went further by trying to impose a law that prohibits the denial of the “genocide” in 2005 but the Senate blocked the process. Larcher became the first French Senate chairman to visit Turkey since 1958.
Larcher and “ahin signed a protocol to improve cooperation between the two parliaments.
Emphasizing the reforms Turkey has made in the last seven years, Larcher said: “Important steps have been taken for the EU. We are in a position to help you on this issue. We are aware of how sensitive you are about your citizens of Kurdish origin and religious freedoms. We do sincerely salute your efforts.”
When asked about the disagreements between him and French President Nicolas Sarkozy about Turkey, the French senator pointed out that he was representing the legislature.
“The legislative and executive branches are separate in our country,” he said. “We may not be of the same opinion as the president all the time. The executive is responsible for today, but we try to shape the future. We don”t rule out the difficulties.“
“ahin said he informed his counterpart about the recently launched initiatives. „The decision about Turkey“s EU membership will be made by the relevant institutions after lengthy negotiations,” he said. “I have conveyed to him that efforts to obstruct the process at this moment were wrong.”
The French delegation will also held meetings in Istanbul on Thursday and will meet with Fener Greek Patriarch Bartholomeos as well as representatives of the cultural and academic worlds.
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