Füle: Writing history not EU’s duty

BRUSSELS

Writing history was not the duty of the European Union, the European Commissioner for Enlargement Stefan Füle said referring to France’s bill punishing denial of Armenian “genocide.” 

He said the duty of the EU was not to write history but to ensure compromise. 

The EU was a project aiming for peace, democracy, stability and prosperity across the continent, Füle said as he responded to a question motion at European Parliament. Füle’s remarks came ahead of a French parliamentary vote on a resolution criminalizing denial of Armenian allegations regarding the incidents of 1915. 

Füle called on Turkey and Armenia to ratify the protocols they had signed without any new preconditions and said normalization of Turkish-Armenian relations would contribute to security, stability and cooperation in South Caucasus. “There is need for vision, courage and dialogue to heal wounds of the past,” Füle said. 

A French parliamentary commission adopted the mentioned resolution Dec. 7. The resolution will be voted upon at the general assembly today. It envisages a “one-year prison term and 45,000 euro fine for those who deny genocide recognized by French laws.” The French Parliament ratified a resolution saying “France recognizes the Armenian genocide of 1915” on Jan. 29, 2011.