A document in Russia's official archives has surfaced that shows Armenians carried out mass killings in 1915, and is one of the strongest pieces of evidence that reveals Yerevan's claims of "genocide" are nothing but a lie. (UPDATED) Turkish academic, Mehmet Perincek, has uncovered a 65-page report while conducting research at the Russian State Military History Archives, Hurriyet daily reported on Monday. The report was written by Brigadier General Leonid Bolkhovinitov and sent to the Russian headquarters in Dec. 11, 1915.
"Armenian voluntary units had started violent slaughters against the Muslim people with racist motives," the report was quoted as saying by Hurriyet. The Russian general also said in his report the information given by the Armenians "are politically-motivated" and did not reflect the actual situation in the region. He also named the incidents as, "The issue defined as the Armenian question." "We shall not believe in the death tolls that the Armenians give. The number of missing people has been exaggerated in the memos distributed by the Dashnak party and there is no doubt that they are politically-motivated. Those Armenian gangs, who triggered the slaughters, are the ones who should be blamed for those missing,"
Bolkhovinitov said in his report. He also accused England of provoking the Armenians to prevent a potential alliance between the Ottoman Empire and Russia. "Before that Turks, Armenians, and Kurds used to live in peace. Even the living conditions of Armenians were much better than Kurds' and Turks," he added. This report is likely to create a new perspective on the Armenian claims, given the fact that Russia and the Ottomans were enemies during the late 1910s, increasing the importance of the report.
Turkey says parliaments and other political institutions are not the appropriate bodies to debate and pass judgment on disputed periods of history. Past events and controversial periods of history should be left to historians for their dispassionate study and evaluation. However Turkey's efforts to carry a deeper investigation have yet to have a positive outcome.
In 2005, Turkey officially proposed to the Armenian government the establishment of a joint historical commission composed of historians and other experts from both sides to study together the events of 1915 and to open the archives of Turkey and Armenia, as well as the archives of all relevant third-party countries and share their findings publicly. Unfortunately, Armenia has not yet responded positively to this initiative and Turkey's proposal remains on the table.
Russian Archives Refute Armenian Claims by Michael van der Galien A Turkish scientist who did research in the official Russian archives, has found a document that clearly disputes just about everything Armenian activists said during World War I and now, about their own conduct and that of the Turks / Ottomans. Before looking at the document, and quoting it, it has to be pointed out that those of us who are actually honest don’t take these things at face value alone; the document has to be authenticated. However, it’s reasonably save to publish it here since the chance that it is not authentic is not that big. Of course, everything is possible, if it is not authentic, you will see me publish a post retracting this one at a later date. I am, however, confident that it will not be necessary to do so. All the more so because the document does not give us much new information; it only confirms what we already know.
Armenian activists have tried to deny it for years, but it should be clear for everyone who has studied this subject in some detail, that the Turks are not the ones lying about the conduct of tens of thousands of Armenians before, during and after World War I. OK, here is what the document, partially, says:
Firstly, it was written by Brigadier General Leonid Bolkhovinitov and sent to the Russian headquarters in Dec. 11, 1915.
The Turkish scientist found the document at the Russian State Military History Archives.
He wrote: “Armenian voluntary units had started violent slaughters against the Muslim people with racist motives.” The Russian Brigadier General added that the information given by the Armenians “are politically-motivated” and did not reflect the actual situation in the region. He also named the incidents as, “The issue defined as the Armenian question.” “We shall not believe in the death tolls that the Armenians give. The number of missing people has been exaggerated in the memos distributed by the Dashnak party and there is no doubt that they are politically-motivated. Those Armenian gangs, who triggered the slaughters, are the ones who should be blamed for those missing,” Bolkhovinitov wrote in his report. Furthermore, he argued, Britain was responsible for must of the hostilities between Russia and the Ottoman Empire. Without British interference, the report said, the two may have formed an alliance. However, the British - the report says - provoked the Armenians to attack Turkish Muslims, which made the situation untenable. He then added: “Before that Turks, Armenians, and Kurds used to live in peace. Even the living conditions of Armenians were much better than Kurds’ and Turks.” Before people start commenting on that line; this too is nothing but a confirmation of what we already knew. Armenians were doing and living well in the Ottoman Empire. Far more Muslims than non-Muslims lived in poverty. Armenians were basically an upper class of the Ottoman population. They were government officials, businessmen, and so on.
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