YEREVAN, JULY 11, ARMENPRESS. As a supporter of the law that criminalizes the denial of the Armenian Genocide, France will support Switzerland to appeal the verdict over the case of the Turkish nationalist Doğu Perinçek in the European Court of Human Rights. French Ambassador to Armenia Henri Reynaud on July 11 during the press conference held in the French Embassy said that supporting Switzerland, he hopes that the positive decision of the ECHR will be a crucial step and France will also adopt a law that criminalizes the denial of the Genocide.

As reports "Armenpress", referring to the commemoration events of the 100th anniversary of the Armenian Genocide, the Ambassador expressed hope that the anniversary will contribute to the broad discussion of the Genocide recognition issue. "Remaining faithful to this disposition, Francois Hollande announced that next year he personally will be present at the hundredth anniversary of the Armenian Genocide in Armenia. In this context, France cannot help expressing satisfaction that Armenia's President has called on his counterpart in the neighboring country, the President of Turkey, inviting him to Armenia on April 24, 2015. France is deeply eager that within the frames of that anniversary progress is recorded in the normalization of the Armenian-Turkish relations," said Henri Reynaud, adding that Armenia's efforts directed to the normalization of the Armenian-Turkish relations will meet assistance from France.

Switzerland’s decision to head back to the courts over the case of the Turkish nationalist Doğu Perinçek, has attracted public criticism from Turkey. Switzerland fined Perinçek in 2007, after he denied the 1915 Armenian genocide in a speech in Lausanne.

The case eventually ended up at the European Court of Human Rights in 2013; where it was ruled that Switzerland had violated the ex-head of the left-wing Turkish Workers' Party’s right to free speech.

The Swiss Justice Ministry appealed the decision and referred it to the Grand Chamber of the Court of Human Rights.

In his 2005 speech, Perinçek called the genocide an “international lie”. The Armenians however, say Ottoman Turks slaughtered up to 1.8 million Armenians in a planned genocide between 1915 and 1918. Turkey denies the mass killings were genocide, saying the death toll is inflated.

Switzerland has anti-racism laws in place that legislate against any denying, belittling or justifying of genocide. In 2007 it was decided at the Federal Court that the facts of the 1915 Armenian Genocide were widely accepted as common knowledge and that denial of these facts was driven by racist motives.