A Greek political scientist calls on Athens to officially recognise crimes committed by the Greek Army during its campaign in Anatolia, saying Greece must confront its own past just as other nations have acknowledged historical atrocities.
Speaking on Greece's state broadcaster ERT, Thanasis Diamantopoulos said the Greek state should recognise the massacres and mass rape of Muslim women carried out by Greek forces in Asia Minor.
"There is no historical actor whose past is without crimes," Diamantopoulos said, arguing that nations demonstrate political maturity by confronting the darkest chapters of their own history.
Drawing comparisons with France's acknowledgement of crimes committed during the Algerian War and the Vichy regime's role in deporting French Jews, as well as the Soviet Union's recognition of the Katyn massacre, Diamantopoulos added Greece should follow the same path.
Greek atrocities
The political scientist questioned when Greece will acknowledge "the crimes committed by the Greek Army in Anatolia," referring to mass rape and killings of Muslim women carried out "with the tolerance and consent of officers and soldiers."
Diamantopoulos also cited Article 59 of the 1923 Treaty of Lausanne, saying the issue was already partially addressed in the peace agreement.
The Greek army occupied Anatolia with the backing of the imperialist powers of the time, an occupation that ended after Türkiye's War of Independence defeated invading Greek forces. The Greek army committed countless atrocities during the campaign, recorded in Article 59 of the Lausanne Peace Treaty, which obliged Greece to pay compensation for violations of the laws of war. The Allied Commission of Inquiry's reported documented the atrocities as well.
Diamantopoulos' remarks come as Greece continues to face criticism from Türkiye over attempts to distort the historical record surrounding the occupation of Anatolia and the crimes committed by the Greek army during the campaign.
