On Wednesday evening, Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu met with representatives of Turkey’s national minorities.

In his remarks, Davutoglu stated that Turkey invites its citizens who have left abroad as a result of the massacres that occurred at the beginning of the 20th century, reported Agos Armenian bilingual weekly of Istanbul.

“They are our diaspora, they are not foreign diaspora,” the Turkish PM said stressing that the Armenian diaspora likewise is their diaspora and is not an enemy.

Davutoglu also drew attention to the national minorities’ great contributions to the Turkish culture.

The premier of Turkey assured, however, that the existing problems in his country’s relations with Armenia, Israel and Greece have not adversely affected the national minorities living in Turkey.