Today marks the centenary of the signing of the Treaty of Sèvres for peace between the Allies and Turkey.
The Treaty of Sèvres is the only treaty signed by both Turkey and the Republic of Armenia, with the free will of the Armenian side. Not only does the Treaty of Sèvres recognize Turkey as responsible for its war crimes, but it also demands that Turkey take steps to facilitate the process of punishing those directly involved in the crime. The Treaty also demands that Turkey repeal the 1915 Abandoned Property laws and the supplementary provisions thereof, compelling it to return all confiscated properties to individual or community owners. Finally, the Treaty of Sèvres provides a legal basis for the arbitration appeal to US President Woodrow Wilson to determine the Armenia-Turkey border.
For the past 100 years, Turkey has continued and continues to deny its crime against humanity, the Armenian Genocide. Not only has Turkey avoided and continue to avoid responsibility for the crime and its consequences, but it also continues to treat Armenia as an enemy since the republic’s 1991 independence, and in recent days it has intensified its belligerent rhetoric against Armenia, Artsakh and Armenians in general through threats of possible military aggression.
The Treaty of Sèvres is a valid international treaty. Although it has not been ratified by all signatories, it has not been legally replaced by any other international instrument. At least from the point of view of the Armenian Cause, and the interests of the Republic of Armenia and the Armenian nation, it remains a legal obligation based on international law, compelling it to return all confiscated properties to individual or community owners.
Moreover, the arbitral award of the President of the United States of America Woodrow Wilson, published on November 22, 1920, continues to be the only international document delineating the legal border between Armenia and Turkey.
100 years after the signing of the Treaty of Sèvres, the Republic of Turkey continues to show hostility towards the Republic of Armenia and the Armenian people. Until Turkey fulfills its obligations under the provisions contained in the Treaty of Sèvres based on international law, Turkey is obliged to:
a. End the 27-year illegal land blockade of the Republic of Armenia
b. Stop its aggressive steps against Armenia, especially recently
c. Stop its anti-Armenian policies within Turkey – including on our historic and occupied lands – or outside, against the Armenian diaspora formed as a result of the Genocide
We are confident that the day will come when, as the author and perpetrator of the Armenian Genocide, Turkey will have to bear its responsibility and compensate all losses of the Armenian people.
We declare that as in the past also in the future we, in cooperation with other Armenian political forces, and especially with the Republic of Armenia, will continue our struggle until the restoration of historical justice.
Social Democrat Hunchakian Party Central Committee
Bureau of the Armenian Revolutionary Federation-Dashnaktsutyun
Armenian Democratic Liberal Party (Ramkavar) Central Committee
August 10, 2020