TURKISH AMBASSADOR RECALLED FROM US IN ARMENIAN GENOCIDE ROW
Mark Tran, Fred Attewill and agencies
The Guardian, UK
Oct 11 2007
Video: Congress ignores Bush over ‘genocide’ vote
Turkey today ordered its ambassador in Washington to return to Ankara
for "consultations" after a US congressional committee approved a
resolution that recognises the 1915 massacres of Armenians by Ottoman
Turks as genocide.
"We are not withdrawing our ambassador. We have asked him to come
to Turkey for some consultations," said a Turkish foreign ministry
spokesman, Levent Bilman, adding that the envoy would remain in Turkey
for up to 10 days.
The Turkish government earlier called the vote "irresponsible",
and with reference to tensions on its border with Iraq the Turkish
government warned that it could damage a strategic partnership at a
sensitive time.
"The committee’s approval of this resolution was an irresponsible move,
which at a greatly sensitive time will make relations with a friend
and ally, and a strategic partnership nurtured over generations,
more difficult," the foreign ministry said.
"Our government regrets and condemns this decision. It is unacceptable
that the Turkish nation has been accused of something that never
happened in history," it said in a statement.
The House of Representatives foreign affairs committee yesterday
approved the resolution by 27 votes to 21. It now goes to the House
floor, and Democratic leaders say there will be a vote by mid-November.
The committee approved the resolution despite warnings from the
president, George Bush, and other top administration officials, who
said it would damage relations with a key Nato ally and jeopardise
an important route for US supplies to Iraq.
About 70% of US air cargo into Iraq goes through Turkey, and American
commanders fear access to airfields and roads will be put at risk.
Turkey provides thousands of truck drivers and other workers for US
operations in Iraq. Also, supplies flow from Turkey’s Incirlik air
base to troops in Afghanistan.
More worrying for the US is that the congressional move will weaken
its influence over Turkey at a time when the country’s ruling Justice
and Development (AK) party is under pressure from the military to
authorise a major incursion into northern Iraq against Kurdish rebels.
Pressure for major military action has intensified because fighters
from the outlawed Kurdistan Workers party (PKK) have killed some 30
soldiers and civilians in the past two weeks.
Turkey has complained that US and Iraqi authorities have failed to
crack down on 3,000 PKK rebels based in northern Iraq. But large-scale
incursions by Turkey in 1995 and 1997, involving an estimated 35,000
and 50,000 troops respectively, failed to dislodge the rebels.
The US fears such an operation could destabilise one of the few
relatively peaceful areas in the country.
Yesterday’s vote was widely condemned in Turkey. "Twenty-seven foolish
Americans," the daily Vatan newspaper said on its front page, in
reference to the committee members who approved the resolution.
The Hurriyet newspaper called the resolution a "Bill of hatred".
Some politicians in the US had "once again sacrificed important matters
to petty domestic politics despite all calls to common sense", said
the president, Abdullah Gul.
The president of Armenia, Robert Kocharian, welcomed the vote. "We
hope this process will lead to a full recognition by the United States
of America of the fact of the Armenian genocide," Mr Kocharian said,
adding that Turkey was in denial.