FORMER U.S. SECRETARIES OF STATE OPPOSE ARMENIAN GENOCIDE RESOLUTION

PanARMENIAN.Net
27.09.2007 12:27 GMT+04:00

/PanARMENIAN.Net/ Fearing an imminent vote on the Armenian Genocide
Resolution (H.Res.106), Turkey’s multi-million dollar lobbyists have
solicited the assistance of eight former U.S. Secretaries of State
in seeking to derail this human rights legislation, reported the
Armenian National Committee of America (ANCA.)

"Facing a growing bipartisan Congressional majority demanding
passage of the Armenian Genocide Resolution, Turkey’s lobbyists –
out of desperation and a never ending desire to squeeze more billing
dollars out of Ankara – have turned to the very architects of our
government’s failed policy of appeasing Turkey," said Aram Hamparian,
Executive Director of the ANCA.

"Sadly, successive U.S. administrations have found themselves lacking
the moral courage to end the cycle of genocide – from Cambodia, to
Rwanda and, today in Darfur – precisely because of their legacy of
caving in to, rather than confronting genocidal regimes."

"We are, as Americans, especially troubled that, in warning Congress
not to make a simple anti-genocide statement for fear of upsetting
Turkey, these officials would outsource our nation’s moral conscience
to a foreign government," added Hamparian.

In their September 25th jointly-signed letter, former Secretaries of
State Madeleine Albright, James Baker III, Warren Christopher, Laurence
Eagleburger, Alexander Haig, Jr., Henry Kissinger, Colin Powell,
and George Schultz, urged Speaker Pelosi to, "prevent the resolution
from reaching the House Floor," thereby denying House Members an
opportunity to vote their conscience on the Armenian Genocide. The
former State Department officials expressed concern that passage of
the resolution "could endanger our national security interests in
the region, including our troops in Iraq and Afghanistan, and damage
efforts to promote reconciliation between Armenia and Turkey."

Introduced on January 30th by Rep. Adam Schiff along with
Representative George Radanovich (R-CA), Congressional Armenian
Caucus Co-Chairs Frank Pallone (D-NJ) and Joe Knollenberg (R-MI),
Rep. Anna Eshoo (D-CA), Rep. Brad Sherman (D-CA) and Rep. Thaddeus
McCotter (R-MI), the Armenian Genocide resolution calls upon the
President to ensure that the foreign policy of the United States
reflects appropriate understanding and sensitivity concerning issues
related to human rights, ethnic cleansing, and genocide documented
in the United States record relating to the Armenian Genocide. The
resolution is cosponsored by 226 Members of Congress from 39 states.

A similar resolution in the Senate (S.Res.106), introduced by
Assistant Majority Leader Dick Durbin (D-IL) and Sen. John Ensign
(R-NV) currently has 31 cosponsors, including Senate Majority Leader
Harry Reid (D-NV) and presidential candidate Hillary Clinton (D-NY).