Answer:
the end of WWI, Eastern Anatolia, where the Muslims and Armenians had lived together for a
thousand years, was in ruins and the population had been decimated. After more than 90 years, the
debate on the events of 1915 still continues in the public sphere, including the Stanford campus.
There can be no doubt that the eastern provinces of the Ottoman Empire in 1915 were the scene to
many horrible atrocities against Armenians, which we condemn. The Turkish Republic, founded in
1923 after the fall of the Ottomans, officially expressed its grief numerous times for the events that
happened and for the people that have died and suffered. Still, Turkey is the target of accusations of
denial, indicating that the real issue is something quite different.
The Armenian thesis claims that the events constitute a genocide, that the Ottoman government had an
official (albeit hidden) intent to exterminate the Armenian nation. It makes extensive references to the
Holocaust to create the impression that the Armenian Genocide had similar methods and goals and is
just as indisputable as the Holocaust. This position is historically not correct. Below, we provide
evidence in hope to enable a better assessment of the historical truth.
