YEREVAN. - Thousands of historical facts and documents in the archives of dozens of countries prove the Armenian Genocide, Chairman of the Heritage Party, MP Raffi Hovhannisyan told journalists April 24. It is a matter of political corroboration of historical truth, he added.

“In assessing the Armenian Genocide, each state must first of all reappraise its own history. We must not beg any president or parliament to recognize the Armenian Genocide. It is first of all a crime against humanity,” Hovhannisyan said.

Citing the example of the United States, he said that its history is on the scales. U.S. ambassadors and consuls testified and told about the Armenian Genocide. As an international entity, Armenia not only demands recognition of the Armenian Genocide, but also elimination of its consequences. Even if Armenia and Turkey normalize relations, they must be based on historical facts, which implies restitution, rather than on groundless protocols, which help turn a blind eye to history, Hovhannisyan said.

During World War I, the Turkish authorities accused Armenians of showing favor to Russia and used it as a pretext for declaring the Armenian population the nation’s enemy. Many historians consider the events in 1915-1923 as a state-sponsored massacre, genocide. The Armenian side claims over 1.5 million victims, 50% of the Armenians early in the 20th century.

Many states have recognized the Armenian Genocide. Uruguay was the first to do it in 1965. The Armenian Genocide has since been recognized by Russia, France, Germany, Netherlands, Belgium, Poland, Lithuania, Slovakia, Sweden, Switzerland, Greece, Cyprus, Lebanon, Canada, Venezuela, Argentina, as well as by 42 of the U.S. states. The Armenian Genocide has also been recognized by Vatican, the European Parliament, and World Church Council.

The Committee on Foreign Affairs of the U.S. House of Representatives approved an Armenian Genocide resolution on March 4.