Armenians praise U.S. genocide vote
U.S. lawmakers approved resolution decrying WWI-era killings by Turks
The Associated Press
Updated: 7:54 p.m. ET Oct 12, 2007
YEREVAN, Armenia – Armenian lawmakers rose to their feet in applause,
and their president urged the United States to go further after a U.S.
House panel approved a resolution labeling the World War I-era
killings of Armenians by Turks genocide.
The decision of the House Foreign Affairs Committee was a triumph for
Armenian-American interest groups who have lobbied Congress for
decades. The resolution is expected to pass a House vote despite the
Bush administration’s concerns about harming relations with Turkey – a
key supply route to U.S. troops in Iraq.
"Historical justice is restored," said the headline Friday in
Respublika Armenia, a pro-government newspaper.
In parliament, opposition deputies joined their pro-government
colleagues Thursday in a prolonged standing ovation for the House
committee’s decision.
"We express our gratitude to our colleagues in Congress who
demonstrated great moral qualities and, not giving into different
pressures, voted for the resolution," said Tigran Torosian, chairman
of the National Assembly.
If Congress recognizes the killings as genocide, it could be a
cathartic moment for this landlocked republic of rugged highlands.
Armenians have been striving for decades to gain recognition of their
stance in a dispute that has poisoned relations with modern Turkey.
Historians estimate up to 1.5 million Armenians were killed by Ottoman
Turks around the time of World War I. Scholars view it as the first
genocide of the 20th century, but Turkey says the toll has been
inflated and that those killed were victims of civil war and unrest.
Armenian leader: ‘No doubt’ on events
Armenian President Robert Kocharian called for "a full recognition by
the United States of America of the fact of the Armenian genocide."
"All of our foreign contacts around the world demonstrate that there
is no disagreement or that there is no doubt anywhere in the world
about the events that took place in Turkey in 1915," Kocharian said
Thursday during a trip to Belgium. "The fact that Turkey has adopted a
position of denial of the genocide doesn’t mean it can bind other
states to deny historic truths as well."
Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan warned the resolution
would hamper efforts to improve ties between Turkey and Armenia, which
have no diplomatic relations.
"Are relations between Turkey and Armenia possible? The way things are
going, no!" Erdogan said.
Some Armenians fear the resolution could bring problems for Armenians
living in Turkey, or the thousands who try to make a living by
traveling there to buy goods for resale back home. Turkey closed its
border with Armenia in 1993 during a war between Armenia and
Azerbaijan, a Muslim ally of Ankara, and maintains a virtual blockade
that hurts Armenia’s economy.
Turkey response feared
Susanna Papikian, a 55-year-old computer programmer, said she was
afraid Turkey might respond harshly, possibly even with military
action.
"As a descendant of refugees from western Armenia, I experience such
negative emotions deep in my genes," she said. "But I’m really happy
that the Foreign Affairs Committee made this decision. I hope the
whole House adopts this resolution."
Many Armenians believe things between the two countries cannot get
much worse. Trade is virtually nonexistent, and Armenia already
considers Turkey’s conditions for establishing diplomatic relations
unacceptable.
"Ankara will be mad for a few more days and then it will calm down,"
was Friday’s headline in the centrist newspaper Azg, the Nation.
Andranik Migranyan, a Russian analyst who focuses on former Soviet
republics, agreed that Turkey was unlikely to take action against
Armenia.
"Turkey is in negotiations to join the European Union," he said in
Yerevan. "The country must conform to certain norms and principles."
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