Originally posted by guaco
Second, I have been to Armenia. The way we were seen as diasporans did not bother me at all. For one, many people thought I was a local. So much for your statement that Armenians in the diaspora have no relations to Armenia. Other than that, some taxi drivers and grocers didn't want to make us pay, the taxi company eventually invited us over for coffee and ice cream, a family we had just met in Artsakh invited us to spend the night at their place, two police officers invited us for a barbecue party, and I met friends with whom I keep in touch regularly, and plan to revisit this summer.
Third, to state that the Diaspora is the largest obstacle to Armenian-Turkish relations is a sheer lie. The Armenian government, and especially the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (Which happens to be led by a diasporan Armenian born in Syria and educated in the USA) has REPEATEDLY stated that Armenia has set no preconditions to talks with Turkey. Turkey, on the other hand, has told Armenia to drop the issue of genocide, and to vacate Artsakh (or Kharabakh). As you can see, it is Turkey that has set preconditions that it knows Armenia will refuse. Therefore, let us please be honest when we look for the true culprit.
Armenia does not equal a nation that is killed by Turks.
Armenia equals a nation that has a tremendously rich culture, litterature and history. The genocide is but a small part of our history, albeit the most tragic.
And it is not so much the "we hate you because your grandfather killed my grandfather" attitude that prevails. Rather, it is "we are angry because you still refuse to acknowledge your past crimes". You speak of friendship, but how are we realistically able to believe that (not among individuals, but as two countries) when we have seen how easily your country can lie about our past? What guarantee do we have that the future does not hold a similar fate?
Do I wish for better relations? OF COURSE! But until Turkey wakes up and acknowledges its past, and decides to no longer meddle in the Artsakh issue, "friendship" is not a possibility.
Here's a comparison for you. Suppose you are a student in the 3rd grade, and you always get good grades. However, you're not too big physically. Now suppose the class bully starts beating you up one day. You are always in pain, and your grades start dropping. Do you want to be friends with this bully at that moment? No. All you want is for him to let you go to school and study as you wish. Maybe three years later, the bully will mature into a smart young boy, and ask for forgiveness. Will you want to be friends then? Why not?
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