Treaty of Sevres and the Results of the Search for a “Savior”

On August 10, 1920, in the suburbs of Paris in the town of Sevres was signed the Treaty of Sevres. The treaty was signed on one hand by the victors in World War I, the UK, France, Romania, Italy, Japan, and Portugal, and on the other hand by the government of the Ottoman Empire.

The treaty was also signed by the delegation of the Republic of Armenia headed by Avetis Aharonyan. The clauses 89-93 directly concerned Armenia. According to the decision of US President Woodrow Wilson, Armenia was to receive parts of the Van and Bitlis vilayets, Erzurum, and the Trebizond port, with a total area of about 100 thousand square kilometers.

The total area of Armenia would be approximately 160 thousand square kilometers. However, the treaty wouldn’t be ratified. The Kemalists who came to power in Turkey refused to recognize the Treaty of Sevres.

In the new geopolitical situation, the Kemalists, becoming closer to Soviet Russia, together with the Russians were able to destroy Armenian statehood and remove the fulfillment of the conditions of the Treaty of Sevres from the agenda.

David Fidanyan