BERLIN, FEBRUARY 27, ARMENPRESS. It’s more than clear for Albert Weiler, member of the German Bundestag, that the massacres and deportation of the Armenians carried out by the Young Turks’ government in the Ottoman Empire, was the first genocide of the 20th century. The German MP representing the Christian Democratic Union of Bundestag attended the commemoration event dedicated to the 100th anniversary of the Armenian Genocide held in Berlin. Weiler gave a comment on this occasion and noted that the great powers did not stop the mass killings of the Christian Armenians at that time, which would be possible from today’s point of view. “Politics has no right to remain silent 100 years after.”

As reports “Armenpress”, Weiler reminded that the CDU/CSU (the Christian Democratic Union/ the Christian Social Union) fraction of Bundestag has called for a number of times upon Turkey to free themselves from the burden of sad heritage.

Among other things, the German MP noted: “It’s sad that till now Turkey is not ready to apologize for the acts of their ancestors. I find that the recognition of this sad page of history must become a precondition of democratic integration in the 21st century. It’s an urgent necessity for a country, aspiring to join the EU, to face with its own past and reassess it.”

Also, the German MP stated that they had hopes on the reconciliation process after signing the Armenian-Turkish protocols. “But today I regret that the process of reconciliation had no progress. I am confident that clearly naming the injustice, which took place, and its recognition by the authorities of today’s Turkey will be good condition for reconciliation. We’ll continue making efforts in that direction,” Albert Weiler noted.

Albert Weiler intends to create a German-Armenian forum in Bundestag aiming to establish closer Armenian-German relations in various spheres and encouraging ties between the societies.