Turkey to restore Armenian church in western province

Turkey is going to restore a 129- year-old Armenian church in the Sivrihisar town of the western Eskisehir province, the semi-official Anatolia news agency reported Wednesday.

Mayor of Sivrihisar Fikret Arslan was quoted as saying that they wanted to restore many historical buildings in the town, including the Surp Yerortutyun Church, constructed in 1881, and an Armenian bath.

The restoration of the church will be sponsored by the Turkish Ministry of Culture and Tourism and the church will be turned into a home of culture.

Turkey and Armenia have seen tensions rise after a U.S. congressional panel and the Swedish parliament passed in March nonbinding resolutions which recognize the killings of Armenians by Ottoman forces during the World War I as genocide, drawing ire from Ankara.

On Tuesday, Turkish ambassador to the United States Namik Tan, who had come back home following the row, left for the United States, saying, "our interlocutors understood the message we wanted to give. We have received satisfactory answers. It is time to return to my office."

Source: Xinhua