Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoğlu angrily condemned the European Parliament on Friday for adopting a resolution urging Turkey to recognize the 1915 incidents as "genocide," saying it was a sign of growing "racism" in Europe.

Speaking to reporters in Ankara, Davutoğlu said such a statement ignored the suffering of Muslim Turks in World War I and risked inciting hatred towards other non-Christian religious groups.

The European Parliament agreed on Wednesday to a resolution urging Turkey to use the centenary of the 1915 tragedy to "recognize the Armenian genocide" and help promote reconciliation between the two peoples. "The European Parliament should not make decisions that result in hatred toward a certain religion or ethnic group if it wants to contribute to peace," said Davutoğlu.

"This issue is now beyond the Turkish-Armenian issue. It's a new reflection of racism in Europe."

Referring to the presence of nationalist and far-right groups in the European Parliament, he said, "All the marginal groups in Europe have managed to make it to the European Parliament."

"The European Parliament has a structure where decisions are made in a very casual way," added Davutoğlu.

On Thursday, European Parliament President Martin Schulz called Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoğlu via phone and said that he empathized with Turkey's reaction against the parliament's resolution regarding the 1915 events. Schulz added that the vote was taken in his absence.

According to Prime Ministry sources, Davutoğlu told Schulz that the resolution was disrupting the historical facts and might harm relations between Turkey and the European Union, as the European Parliament's decision was far from bringing a resolution to the issue between Turkey and Armenia.

While reiterating Turkey's rejection of the decision, Davutoğlu said that, in order to prove his sincerity toward the improvement of relations between Armenia and Turkey, the European Parliament should call on Armenia and its diaspora to start a dialogue with Turkey to resolve the dispute.

Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoğlu on Friday angrily condemned the European Parliament for adopting a resolution urging Turkey to recognize the 1915 incidents as "genocide," saying it was a sign of growing "racism" in Europe.

Speaking to reporters in Ankara, Davutoğlu said such a statement ignored the suffering of Muslim Turks in World War I and risked inciting hatred towards other non-Christian religious groups.

The European Parliament on Wednesday agreed to a resolution urging Turkey to use the centenary of the 1915 tragedy to "recognize the Armenian genocide" and help promote reconciliation between the two peoples. "The European Parliament should not make decisions that result in hatred toward a certain religion or ethnic group if it wants to contribute to peace," said Davutoğlu.

"This issue is now beyond the Turkish-Armenian issue. It's a new reflection of racism in Europe."

Referring to the presence of nationalist and far-right groups in the European Parliament, he said, "All the marginal groups in Europe have managed to make it to the European Parliament."

"The European Parliament has a structure where decisions are made in a very casual way," added Davutoğlu.

On Thursday, European Parliament President Martin Schulz called Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoğlu via phone and said that he empathized with Turkey's reaction against the parliament's resolution regarding the 1915 events. Schulz added that the vote was taken in his absence.

According to Prime Ministry sources, Davutoğlu told Schulz that the resolution was disrupting the historical facts and might harm relations between Turkey and the European Union, as the European Parliament's decision was far from bringing a resolution to the issue between Turkey and Armenia.

While reiterating Turkey's rejection of the decision, Davutoğlu said in order to prove his sincerity toward the improvement of relations between Armenia and Turkey, the European Parliament should call on Armenia and its diaspora to start a dialogue with Turkey to resolve the dispute.