Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan sent a letter to the Armenian Patriarch in Patriarch Sahak Maşalyan, in which he paid tribute to the memory of the Armenians who died in 1915, Anadolu reports.
"I commemorate with respect the Ottoman Armenians who have lost their lives in the difficult conditions of World War I, and I extend my condolences to their grandchildren," Erdogan said in a statement.
He stressed that the attempts of certain circles to politicize (the events of 1915) and turn them into an instrument of pressure on Ankara were not helpful.
"Our peoples lived on these lands in peace for centuries. We must not allow the culture of coexistence of Turks and Armenians to be forgotten, which has multiplied over hundreds of years and was considered an example for all humanity," the message says.