Go to Akhtamar, But Show Restraint, Says Turkologist

Turkologist Hakob Chakryan, while meeting with journalists today, expressed his opinion on the September 19 mass to be held in the Armenian Church of the Holy Cross on Lake Van’s Akhtamar Island and the Armenian party’s participation in the event. 

In Chakryan’s opinion, every state in organizing an event serves its own interests and that shouldn’t be surprising, especially in Turkey’s case, since, beginning from 1991, they have adopted a policy of obvious hostility toward Armenia. 

The analyst considers Armenia’s participation in the event to be a sensitive issue. 

“Turkey has announced to the world that they’ve invited Armenia. Now in the case of not going, if we’re talking about speculation, they will speculate; they will speculate likewise in the case of going; now [we] must consider in which case they’ll speculate less — according to that, we will decide. I think no high-level delegation, but nevertheless, [we] must go, be present, but show restraint, not become a participant in the show like the last time,” advised Chakryan. 

The analyst considered the Armenian delegation’s enthusiasm after the last visit, when the cross wasn’t placed on Aghtamar, to be odd. “When they went, didn’t they see that the cross wasn’t there?” Chakryan asked surprisingly.