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Turkeys President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has called on US President Joe Biden to reverse a decision to name the 1915 massacreof Armenians by the former Ottoman Empire genocide,warning that the declaration would harm bilateral ties.

In a statement on April 24, Biden honored all those Armenians who perished in the genocide that began 106 years ago today,becomingthe first US president to formally refer to the killings as genocide.

The US president has made baseless, unjust and untrue remarks about the sad events that took place in our geography over a century ago, Erdogan said after a cabinet meeting onMonday.

I hope the US president will turn back from this wrong step as soon as possible, he added.

Erdogan stressed that the move would hinder ties, advising the United States to look in the mirror.

If you say genocide, then you need to look at yourselves in the mirror and make an evaluation. The Native Americans, I dont even need to mention them, what happened is clear, he said, in reference to the treatment of indigenous people by European settlers at the end of the 15th century as they colonized North America.

According to a team at University College London, back then, some 55 million indigenous people died during the European conquest of America.

The majority of the deaths occurred by diseases brought over from Europe. War, slavery, and displacement also contributed to the decline of the populations of the indigenous community.

Erdogan said, While all these truths are out there, you cannot pin the genocide accusation on the Turkish people.

The Turkish president said his country still sought to establish good neighborly ties with Armenia, reiterating his call on Turkish and Armenian historians to form a joint commission to investigate the events in 1915.

Erdogan also contested the death toll and said some 150,000 people had been killed, as opposed to the roughly 1.5 millionArmenia says were massacred.

The toll was exaggerated by adding a zero to the end, he said.

Ankara acknowledges that many Armenians living in the Ottoman Empire were killed in clashes with Ottoman forces duringWorld War Onebut denies that the killings were systematically orchestrated and constitute genocide.

Turkey also argues that such accusations do not take into account the number of the Turkish deaths during the conflict.

On Sunday, Erdogans spokesman Ibrahim Kalin said Ankara would respond to Bidens simply outrageous statement in coming days and months.

According to Turkeys Parliament Speaker Mustafa Sentop, Turkish lawmakers are due to respond to Bidens remarks on Wednesday.

Bidens decision came amid already strained ties between Ankara and Washington over a host of issues, including Turkeys acquisition of Russian S-400 missile defense systems.

Erdogan said he expected to open the door for a new period in relations and to discuss all disputes with Biden at a NATO summit in June, but warned of a further deterioration in ties unless the allies can compartmentalize issues.

Earlier on Monday, angry Turks gathered outside the American consulate in Istanbul to protest Bidens statement.

The demonstrators chanted slogans such as Genocide is a lie, its an American plan,and also called for an end to the American militarys use of the Incirlik airbase in southern Turkey.

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Erdogan to Biden: US must look in mirror before accusing ...