BUSH FEARS THE WRATH OF HIS TURKISH ALLY
by Reinout van Wagtendonk*
Radio Netherlands, Netherlands
Oct 11 2007
On Wednesday, the Foreign Affairs Committee of the United States
House of Representatives passed the Armenian Genocide Resolution
Bill. The bill describes the deaths of around 1.5 million Armenians
(from 1915 to 1917) at the hands of the Ottoman Turks as "genocide".
President George W Bush is fiercely opposed to the initiative because
he fears it will "do great harm" to his country’s relations with
Turkey, which is an important ally in the war in Iraq.
Turkey has always denied that its soldiers committed genocide against
the Armenians during the First World War. Last week, Turkish Prime
Minister Tayyid Erdogan called President Bush to complain about plans
by members of the House Foreign Affairs Committee to hold a non-binding
vote on the issue. The initiative is the first step towards holding
a vote in the House of Representatives.
On Wednesday Mr Bush said he recognised "the immense suffering of
the Armenian people…
"but this resolution is not the right response to these historic mass
killings. Its passage would do great harm to our relations with the
key ally in NATO and in the global war on terror."
Threat to end support Turkey is now threatening to end its support for
US military operations in Iraq and Afghanistan if the House endorses
the resolution, which could happen sometime next month. The resolution
is non-binding, which means that President Bush can ignore it. However,
it could cause serious damage to relations with Turkey because Ankara
might consider it an insult.
Turkey suspended military ties with France in 2006 after its
parliament passed a resolution making it illegal to deny the Armenian
genocide. The Turkish air base Incirlik is critical to the US war
effort in Iraq. Supplies are also sent daily by road on a daily
basis. US Defense Secretary Robert Gates has called on Congress to
consider Turkey’s strategic importance.
The House Foreign Affairs Committee approved the resolution by a vote
of 27 to 21. The draft resolution in the House of Representatives
received the endorsement of 222 congressmen, which is more than
a majority.
How will Turkey respond?
A number of congressmen point to a previous resolution calling on
Japan to recognise the suffering of the so-called ‘comfort girls’
(sex slaves) during the Second World War. This also led to strained
relations, but according to Democratic Congressman David Wu Turkey
will remain a friend an ally. He says it is important to recognise
the truth and that Turkey face its past.
However Republican Congressman Dan Burton is not so optimistic. He says
Turkey is the only US ally in the region and the resolution will be
considered a slap in the face. The resolution does not follow party
lines since many Republicans support it while many Democrats agree
with President Bush that it is important not to offend Turkey.
* RNW translation (fs)