The developments in the Middle East resemble the Armenian Genocide, Armenian FM Edward Nalbandian said while delivering a speech at the Chatham House.

“The attention of the international community is focused today on the unacceptability of the further escalation of the conflicts in the Middle East and beyond. The spread of terrorist networks and devastations caused by their activities, crisis in Ukraine, instability in many other parts of the world show that the world is undergoing through heavy shocks of turbulence. Yesterday on my way from Paris to London the Eurostar train had to stop for almost two hours because of a situation related to refugees. What’s happening thousands of miles away knocks the doors of Europe. We can no more talk about isolated problems. Early warning and prevention of conflicts and destructive wars should always be top priorities not only for those affected, but also for the international community, as a whole,” the Minister said.

He recalled that the Armenians have for centuries been a distinctive part of the multicultural mosaic of the Middle East, and are grateful to the people of the region who a century ago sheltered hundreds of thousands of survivors of the Armenian Genocide.

“Now, when the ethnic and religious communities face an existential threat, we feel moral responsibility to stand with them,” the Minister emphasized.

“The violence in the Middle East has not bypassed our compatriots, many of whom lost their lives in terrorist attacks, the Armenian settlements, churches, schools and cultural institutions were destroyed. Just as one hundred years ago tens of thousands of Armenians, together with other peoples of the Middle East, today again were obliged to abandon their places of residence. More than 15 thousand Syrian-Armenians found refuge in Armenia.

It is not a coincidence that the terrorists declared a war against the cultural heritage of the people of the region. It is exactly through the history and the collective memory that the universal values of civilized world, the tolerance, coexistence and respect to the culture and religion of others pass from generation to generation. These values stand in a stark contrast to the ideology of xenophobia and discrimination adhered by the terrorist groups. Destruction of many Islamic sacred sites and the monuments of historic Palmyra and Nimrud, the blowing up of the Armenian church in Der ez-Zor – a sanctuary of the remains of many victims of the Armenian Genocide and other similar barbaric acts are crimes committed against civilization.

It is imperative to create mechanisms to deprive terrorists of the resources and financial means, prevent the influx of the foreign fighters, precluding them to continue the use of the territory of the neighboring states for trans-boundary attacks. The international law holds responsibility not only for the crimes against humanity but also for its complicity. This should be clear for all those who try to deny and justify the past crimes and incite current violence.

This year marks the Centenary of the Armenian Genocide. The commemoration attracted huge international attention. Here, in Britain, too, the leading media outlets were widely covering the message of the Centenary of the Armenian Genocide.

In 1929 Winston Churchill characterized the Armenian massacres as a “holocaust” and added that “this crime was planned and executed for political reasons. The opportunity presented itself for clearing Turkish soil of a Christian race.” British historian Arnold Toynbee entitled his 1915 report as “The Murder of a Nation” and called it “an organized murder of the Armenian race.”

What happens today in the Middle East revives the horrors of the Armenian Genocide. In 1915 Armenians were forced to march through the deserts where now the terror of Daesh is spreading, where Yazidis, Christians and other minority groups are being exterminated, and traces of ancient civilizations are being destroyed. Lack of adequate international reaction to the massacres committed against Armenians in 1894-96 and impunity resulted in the Genocide of 1915. On May 24th, 1915 the allied powers – Great Britain, Russia and France- adopted a special declaration warning the perpetrators of the atrocities against the Armenian people that they would be held personally responsible “for these new crimes of Turkey against humanity and civilization.” However, it was a late attempt at preventing what had to be stopped much earlier. Failure of early warning mechanisms and prevention efforts made genocide a re-occurring phenomenon in the 20th century.

We, Armenians, as the survivors of the first genocide of the 20th century, feel a great moral responsibility towards the prevention of new crimes against humanity. We initiate Genocide prevention resolutions in the UN, organize regular international conferences and workshops for genocide scholars, and are determined to extend our contribution to the genocide prevention efforts of the international community.”