Question

On April 24th, Turkey celebrates National Sovereignty Day to commemorate the founding of its government. April 24th is also a special day for Armenians, called Armenian Genocide Remembrance Day. Some have lobbied to make this an official day in Turkey as well, but the Turkish government insists that this would distract from celebrating the founding of their country. For what other reason is the Turkish government MOST likely opposed to recognizing Armenian Genocide Remembrance Day?

If they recognize the genocide, they might have to pay millions in reparations to descendants.


There are not any Armenians who live in Turkey so it would not make sense to celebrate it in their nation.


The current leader of Turkey was one of the men involved in the murder of millions of Armenian citizens.


The Turkish government has true documentation to prove that there was no such thing as the Armenian genocide.

The Allied forces made considerable efforts to block Hitler’s access to oil, hoping this would stifle his war effort. The chemists at IG Farben were able to come up with a substitute that could be used by the German army to run their trucks and tanks. During the Subsequent Nuremberg Trials, evidence of this substitute would MOST likely have been entered to prove their guilt on which charge?


preparation, initiation, and waging of wars of aggression


crimes against humanity through participation in slave labor


membership in a criminal organization, the SS


crimes against humanity through the plundering occupied territories

Answer 1

The Turkish government likely opposes recognizing Armenian Genocide Remembrance Day due to potential reparations and significant political and historical repercussions that acknowledgment would involve.

Step-by-step explanation:

The Turkish government is most likely opposed to recognizing Armenian Genocide Remembrance Day for several reasons, one of which is that acknowledging the genocide might entail a series of consequences, including international pressure to pay reparations to descendants of the victims. Moreover, the recognition of the genocide could lead to domestic and global political repercussions, entail a rewriting of Turkish history, and challenge the national identity that's been cultivated since the founding of the modern Turkish Republic. The Turkish state has long maintained that the deaths of Armenians during World War I were not the result of a deliberate policy of genocide but were casualties of the war and the tumultuous period. Admitting to genocide would suggest a premeditated and systematic plan to eliminate the Armenian population, which contradicts the narrative that the government has upheld for over a century.

The Young Turk government of the Ottoman Empire carried out the Armenian Genocide from 1915 to 1923. The genocide led to the death of more than 1.5 million Armenians along with atrocities committed against other Christian minorities in the region. This historical event is a deeply contentious and emotional issue, and the failure of recognition by the Turkish government remains a significant point of international and diplomatic contention.