Archival documents

Category: Russian Archives

Published: 27 July 2008

Written by Hovannes Kachaznuni

Confessions of Hovannes Kachaznuni, the first Prime Minister of the Armenian State founded in 1918... This report, dated 1923, is banned in Armenia, and the copies in Western libraries are destroyed. A copy of it in Russian was first discovered and published by historian Türkkaya Ataöv in 1985. Click here for the original document (in Russian, 7.38 mb) and here for its translation.

Here are some of Kachaznuni's observations:

"The decision of the relocation of Armenians was a rightful measure taken by Turks to serve their purpose."
"Turkey had acted with an instinct of self-defense."
"They [Armenians] had acted in pursuit of the imperialist demand,”From Sea to Sea” and had been provoked with this."
"They [Armenians] massacred the Muslim population."
"The Armenian terrorist acts were directed at winning over the Western public opinion."
"The fault was not to be found outside the Dashnaktsutyun Party."