ISTANBUL. – Turkish daily Vatan’s columnist Can Atakli commented on the investigation, which Switzerland launched against Turkey’s Minister for EU Affairs, Egemen Bagis who, while in Zurich, had denied the Armenian Genocide.  

The Turkish journalist notes that in Zurich Bagis attempted to make an individual protest against the bill that criminalizes the denial of genocide—including the Armenian Genocide—and, based on this, Zurich’s Chief Prosecutor Christine Braunschweig launched an investigation against him.

“It will be very difficult to file a lawsuit against Bagis, since he has diplomatic immunity. But this has its limits, too. I do not know whether proceedings would be launched against him when Bagis leaves his ministerial position. Switzerland is not an EU member, but it is a Schengen Agreement member.

And if Bagis were to enter any EU country, he could be arrested and sent to Zurich. It is certainly inconceivable that a Turkish minister could be arrested in any European country, but even the investigation will create diplomatic problems,” Vatan daily’s columnist wrote.            

As Armenian News-NEWS.am informed earlier, the Prosecutor’s Office of Switzerland’s Canton of Zurich launched an investigation against Turkey’s Minister for EU Affairs, Egemen Bagis. The proceedings were launched after when Bagis had stated in Zurich, and while returning from the World Economic Forum in Davos, that there was no Armenian Genocide.