Armenian Assembly of America
122 C Street, NW, Suite 350
Washington, DC 20001
Phone: 202-393-3434
Fax: 202-638-4904
Email: info@aaainc.org
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PRESS RELEASE
July 19, 2004
CONTACT: David Zenian
E-mail: zenian@aaainc.org
ADMINISTRATION’S OPPOSITION TO A GENOCIDE RESOLUTION
WILL NOT SERVE ARMENIAN-TURKISH RELATIONS
Washington, DC – The Bush Administration’s determination to bloc any
Congressional resolution reaffirming the Armenian Genocide will further
erode Washington’s ability to normalize relations between Armenia and
Turkey, the Armenian Assembly said Monday.
“It is obvious that there is ample bipartisan support to pass any
legislation on this subject, therefore the Administration’s latest statement
on the issue was totally unnecessary, and at best, it only served to further
pander to Turkey, just as President Bush did during the recent NATO
Conference,” Assembly Board of Directors Chairman Anthony Barsamian said.
During the NATO Conference in Istanbul last month, President Bush described
Turkey as a “strong, secular democracy, a majority Muslim society, and a
close ally of free nations” and said “your country, with 150 years of
democratic and social reform, stands as a model to others” – totally
ignoring the dark days of the 1915-16 Armenian Genocide during the final
days of the Ottoman Empire.
“In its most recent statement, the Administration says its goal is to
bolster reconciliation between Turkey and Armenia along with greater
cooperation between the two countries, and yet it continues to contribute to
Turkish intransigence,” Barsamian said.
“Despite four years of pressure from the United States, Turkey has not
appreciably changed its hostile policies against Armenia. It has not lifted
its blockade of Armenia, thus maintaining the only closed border in Europe,
or established diplomatic relations with its neighbor. The Administration is
wrong on the facts regarding Turkey-Armenia relations, wrong on its policies
and wrong in its politics – international and domestic,” Barsamian added.
The Armenian Assembly of America is the largest Washington-based nationwide
organization promoting public understanding and awareness of Armenian
issues. It is a 501(c)(3) tax-exempt membership organization.
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