SENATOR MCCAIN AVOIDS CALLING THE EVENTS OF 1915 "GENOCIDE
armradio.am
05.02.2008 14:04
Republican Presidential hopeful John McCain, in a letter sent to the
Armenian National Committee of America (ANCA), reached out to Armenian
American voters by outlining his views on issues of special concern
to the Armenian American community.
The Arizona Senator’s letter, while notably falling short of properly
characterizing the Armenian Genocide, condemns the "the brutal murder
of as many as one and a half million Armenians under the rule of
the Ottoman Empire," and praises the Armenian American community for
"ensuring that one of the greatest tragedies of the 20th century is
never forgotten." The longtime legislator and Vietnam War veteran
wrote that:
"It is fair to say that this tragedy, the brutal murder of as many as
one and a half million Armenians under the rule of the Ottoman Empire,
has also been one of the most neglected. The suffering endured by
the Armenian people during that period represented the prologue to
what has come to be known as humanity’s bloodiest century."
Senator McCain described "the rise of independent Armenia from
such painful experiences" as "extremely inspirational," and praised
"the vibrancy of the Armenian diaspora." He went on to express his
deep admiration for "both Armenia’s support of coalition operations
in Iraq and NATO peacekeeping efforts in Kosovo, as well as the
Armenian-American community’s great contributions to our nation. In
my visits to Armenia, I have been deeply impressed by the tremendous
progress made in very difficult circumstances." He closed his letter
by expressing that he "greatly appreciate[s] this opportunity and
look forward to working with the Armenian-American community in my
campaign and as the next President of the United States."
As a Senator, John McCain has opposed the Armenian Genocide Resolution
and has not generally been proactive in supporting other elements of
the Armenian American legislative agenda. At a town hall meeting in
New Hampshire on Sunday, January 6, 2008 Senator McCain was reported
to have answered a question on the Armenian Genocide by noting
that he recognizes the Armenian Genocide, but opposes the Armenian
Genocide Resolution due to the Turkish government’s sensitivities. In
correspondence with Arizona constituents he wrote, in October of
2007, that, "Condemning modern Turkey for the acts of the Ottoman
Empire would serve only to harm relations with the Turkish people
while injecting the Congress into the sensitive role of historian
of a period clearly preceding the births of all but a very few
congressmen. That is not a development I wish to help facilitate."
In 1989, Senator McCain introduced legislation supporting a peaceful
and fair settlement of the Nagorno Karabagh conflict and later
supported Section 907 and the Humanitarian Aid Corridor Act. In 1999,
however, he voted against maintaining Section 907.
In February of 2000, Senator McCain wrote, in an earlier campaign
letter to the ANCA, that he condemned "the systematic murder of as
many as one and a half million Armenians," and welcomed "Armenia’s
emergence as an independent nation and its growth as a democracy." He
also discussed his 1997 visit to Armenia, during which he "was
fortunate to witness . . .
the gains that country has made since it achieved independence from
the former Soviet Union," and noted his "sincere desire to continue
to forge the closest relations between Armenia and the United States."