Armenian National Committee of America
1711 N Street, NW
Washington, DC 20036
Tel. (202) 775-1918
Fax. (202) 775-5648
Email anca@anca.org
Internet
PRESS RELEASE
April 8, 2008
Contact: Elizabeth S. Chouldjian
Tel: (202) 775-1918
ANCA OUTLINES 13 FAILINGS BY THE BUSH ADMINISTRATION ON ARMENIAN
AMERICAN ISSUES
WASHINGTON, DC – The Armenian National Committee of America (ANCA),
in a letter to Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, has outlined
the Armenian American community’s concerns regarding the Bush
Administration’s seven-year record of largely counterproductive,
frequently unfriendly, and, at times, antagonistic policies toward
Armenia and the Armenian American community.
The April 4th letter, signed by ANCA Chairman Ken Hachikian, listed
thirteen areas in which the President and his Administration fell
short of both their own commitments and our nation’s basic human
rights standards, retreated from America’s historic commitment to
Armenia, and strained – through a series of ill-advised policies
and often hostile actions – the enduring ties that have long bound
together the American and Armenian peoples. The following points
are covered in significant detail in the 6-page letter, the full
text of which is provided below:
1) The President’s broken campaign pledge to recognize the
Armenian Genocide
2) Opposition to the Congressional Genocide Resolution
3) The Evans firing and the Hoagland nominations
4) The waiver of Section 907 of the Freedom Support Act
5) Reduction in aid to Armenia
6) Abandonment of the military aid parity agreement
7) Mistaken listing of Armenia as a terrorist country
8) Lack of U.S.-Armenia Presidential visitations
9) Failure to confront the desecration of the Djulfa cemetery
10) Failure to maintain a balanced policy on Nagorno Karabagh
11) Taxpayer financing of the Baku-Ceyhan bypass of Armenia
12) Failure to effectively pressure Turkey and Azerbaijan to end
their blockades
13) Neglect of relations with the Armenian American community
Over the course of the past seven years, the ANCA has repeatedly
requested, to no avail, the opportunity to meet with the President
and his Secretary of State to discuss these and other issues of
concern to Armenian Americans. This most recent ANCA letter, once
again, asks for such a meeting, inviting the Secretary of State to
visit with the collective leadership of the Armenian American
community to discuss U.S. foreign policy toward Armenia and the
surrounding region over the remaining months of the Bush
Administration.
#####
April 4, 2008
The Honorable Condoleezza Rice
Secretary of State
U.S. Department of State
Washington, DC 20520
Re: Administration policies on Armenian American issues
Dear Secretary Rice:
As the Administration of George W. Bush completes its final year in
office, we write to once again ask you to meet with the collective
leadership of the Armenian American community to discuss our
commonly held views and express our shared disappointments
regarding the Administration’s policies on a broad range of foreign
policy issues of special concern to our nation’s one and a half
million Americans of Armenian heritage.
We are profoundly disappointed by the Administration’s complicity
in Turkey’s denial of the Armenian Genocide and troubled that its
approach toward Armenia – measured against the standard of past
presidents, the special relationship that has long existed between
our two countries, and the enduring ties and shared values that
have historically brought together the American and Armenian
peoples – has been, in our view, largely counterproductive,
frequently unfriendly, and, at times, antagonistic.
Closer to home, we remain troubled by the Administration’s failure
to reach out to and to meaningfully engage the Armenian American
community. Rather than looking to the Armenian American community
as a uniquely valuable source of regional understanding, a
wellspring of civic activism, or a vital bridge to the future
growth and expansion of our bilateral ties, the White House and
State Department chose instead to dismiss those Americans who, by
virtue of their heritage, feel most strongly about these very
issues. At every key juncture since 2001, the Administration
placed artificial obstacles in the way of greater Armenian American
participation in and support for the formulation and implementation
of balanced and constructive policies toward Armenia and the
surrounding region. This approach in our view reflects both a
missed opportunity and an unfortunate symbol of an Administration
that lacks the confidence to engage with its citizens and answer
openly for the policies it advances in the name of all Americans.
We have, as you know, in a series of letters over the past seven
years, shared our concerns regarding a broad array of Armenian
American issues, thirteen of which we have listed below in the text
of this correspondence. We have repeatedly noted that the
Administration’s policy of active complicity in Turkey’s denial of
the Armenian Genocide represents both a moral outrage against
America’s core values, and a shameful retreat, under foreign
pressure, from our nation’s proud legacy as the world’s leading
defender of human rights. This moral failing has, of course, only
been compounded by the Administration’s strident opposition to the
Armenian Genocide Resolution and the State Department’s firing of
U.S. Ambassador to Armenia, John Marshall Evans, for simply
speaking truthfully about this atrocity.
We have the right to expect more from our government. America
should never hide from the truth, no matter how "inconvenient" it
may seem at the time to stand up for our values. History has
taught us that we should never compromise our nation’s values or
allow a foreign country to impose a gag-rule on our defense of
human rights.
The Administration has also failed, over the past seven years, to
stand by Armenia or, with the sole exception of Armenia’s
participation in the Millennium Challenge Account, a merit-based
program, to take meaningful steps to strengthen the U.S.-Armenia
relationship. This performance is perhaps most notably illustrated
by the consistent attempts by the White House and Department of
State to sharply reduce U.S. economic aid levels, the "mistaken"
listing in 2003 of Armenia as a terrorist watch country, and, of
course, by the conspicuous refusal by President Bush to either
visit Armenia or to officially invite the President of Armenia to
the White House.
Equally troubling has been the Administration’s silence or even
acquiescence in the face of the regional threats faced by the
people of Armenia and Nagorno Karabagh. Among our concerns in this
area, as reflected below, are the Administration’s unwarranted
waiver of Section 907 of the Freedom Support Act, its abandonment
of its own Military Aid Parity Agreement, its support for taxpayer
financing of the Baku-Ceyhan bypass of Armenia, its failure to
maintain a balanced policy toward Nagorno Karabagh, and – perhaps
most notably – the absence of any meaningful effort to pressure
either Turkey or Azerbaijan to end their illegal blockades.
Finally, we are profoundly troubled that, over the course of the
past seven years, despite repeated requests, neither our President
nor our Secretary of State chose to meet with the leadership of our
community to solicit our views, to share the rationale behind your
policies, or to engage in an open and honest discussion about
America’s future relationship with Armenia and the region. In
light of the fact that we have not had an opportunity to meet, we
would like to share with you the following areas in which we have
been troubled by the shortcomings of the Administration’s policies
and actions:
1) The President’s broken campaign pledge to recognize the
Armenian Genocide
Almost immediately after taking office, President Bush abandoned
his campaign pledge to recognize the Armenian Genocide. Rather
than honoring this promise and keeping his word, the President has,
in his annual April 24th statements, used evasive and euphemistic
terminology to avoid describing Ottoman Turkey’s systematic and
deliberate destruction of the Armenian people by its proper name –
the Armenian Genocide. Moreover, the Administration has
unconscionably echoed the Turkish government’s denial by claiming
that the Armenian Genocide, one of the most studied genocides of
the 20th century, "should be a matter of historical inquiry, not
legislation."
As you recall, on March 21st of last year, during a hearing of the
House Appropriations Subcommittee on State-Foreign Operations, you
refused to answer questions, posed by Congressman Adam Schiff, as
to whether the murder of 1.5 million Armenians could be
characterized as anything other than a genocide. Later that year,
on October 17th, after the Foreign Affairs Committee passed the
Armenian Genocide Resolution, the President, from the lawn of the
White House, argued that, "one thing Congress should not be doing
is sorting out the historical record of the Ottoman Empire,"
claiming there was "more important work to do."
2) Opposition to the Congressional Genocide Resolution
The Bush Administration, throughout its tenure, has actively sought
to block the adoption of the Genocide Resolution in both the House
and Senate. As recently as October of last year, the President
spoke to the national media from the White House against the
recognition of the Armenian Genocide, and, giving into the
blackmail and threats of Turkey, personally lobbied Members of
Congress to prevent the commemoration of this crime. We are
particularly saddened that you personally lobbied against the
resolution, as did Secretary of Defense Gates, and remain troubled
by the truly unprecedented level of participation by the nation’s
most senior leadership in a foreign government’s campaign to defeat
human rights legislation in the U.S. Congress.
3) The Evans firing and the Hoagland nominations
The Bush Administration fired U.S. Ambassador John Evans, a career
Foreign Service officer with 35 years of experience, simply for
speaking truthfully about the Armenian Genocide. Despite numerous
Congressional inquiries, the Administration continuously attempted
to cover up the true reasons for his removal and the Turkish
government’s protests over his statements. When the American
Foreign Service Association (AFSA) awarded John Evans the Christian
Herter prize for constructive dissent, Administration officials
forced AFSA to rescind the award just days before Turkish President
Erdogan came to Washington, DC to meet with the President.
The President’s nominee to replace Ambassador Evans, Dick Hoagland,
denied the Armenian Genocide in his written responses to Senate
inquiries during his confirmation process. After being blocked by
a Senatorial "hold" placed by Robert Menendez in the 109th
Congress, the President again nominated Ambassador Hoagland, only
to have this nomination blocked once again on the grounds that a
diplomat who denies the Armenian Genocide cannot serve effectively
as the U.S. representative to Armenia.
4) The waiver of Section 907 of the Freedom Support Act
The Bush Administration, in 2001, aggressively pressured Congress
into granting the President the authority to waive Section 907, a
provision of law that bars aid to the government of Azerbaijan
until it lifts its blockades of Armenia and Nagorno Karabagh.
President Bush has subsequently used this authority to provide
direct aid, including military assistance, to the government of
Azerbaijan, despite their outrageous and escalating threats of
renewed war and their continued violation of the provisions of this
law.
5) Reduction in aid to Armenia
In the face of the devastating, multi-billion dollar impact of the
Turkish and Azerbaijani blockades on the Armenian economy,
President Bush has, in each of his years in office, proposed to
Congress that Freedom Support Act humanitarian and developmental
aid to Armenia be reduced. The President’s most recent economic
aid request, for Fiscal Year 2009, was $24 million, dramatically
less than the $91.5 million, when he came into office in Fiscal
Year 2001. Furthermore, for Fiscal Year 2009, the President’s
budget proposed either maintaining or increasing aid to every
former Soviet Republic, except Armenia, for which the President
recommended a 59% decrease in aid.
6) Abandonment of the military aid parity agreement
The Bush Administration broke its word and abandoned its November
2001 agreement with Congress and the Armenian American community to
maintain even levels of military aid to Armenia and Azerbaijan. In
successive budgets submitted to Congress, the President effectively
sought to tilt the regional military balance in favor of
Azerbaijan, undermining the role of the U.S. as an impartial
mediator, despite Azerbaijan’s increasingly violent threats of
renewed aggression.
7) Mistaken listing of Armenia as a terrorist country
The Bush Administration sought, unsuccessfully, in December of
2002, to place Armenia on an Immigration and Naturalization Service
watch list for terrorist countries. This obvious error was reversed
only after a nation-wide protest campaign. Neither the White House
nor the Department of Justice has ever apologized for the offense
caused by this mistake, choosing, instead, to attempt to justify
what is broadly perceived as an effort to pander to Turkey by
vilifying Armenia.
8) Lack of U.S.-Armenia Presidential visitations
The President neither visited Armenia nor did he invite the
President of Armenia to visit the United States, despite similar
visits by the leaders of Georgia and Azerbaijan.
9) Failure to confront the desecration of the Djulfa cemetery
The Administration again illustrated its lack of willingness to
confront anti-Armenian violence and aggression in its lack of a
meaningful response to the desecration, in December of 2005, of an
ancient Armenian cemetery by Azerbaijani soldiers. As documented
on videotape and in photos that were promptly shared with the State
Department following the incident, approximately 200 troops using
sledgehammers and picks systematically destroyed hundreds of
khatchkars (intricately carved stone-crosses) in the cemetery in
the Djulfa region of Nakhichevan. This sacred, 1,200-year old site
of the Armenian Apostolic Church, once home to as many as 10,000
khatchkars, is now nearly entirely destroyed, and has, in fact,
recently been converted into a firing range by the Azerbaijani
military.
Despite repeated and sustained attempts on our part, calls for an
investigation by International Christian Concern and other civic
and faith-based groups, and a series of Congressional inquiries,
the Administration, which has otherwise and elsewhere trumpeted it
defense of religious freedoms, remained silent for several months,
until March of the following year, when a State Department official
finally condemned the desecration in response to an inquiry at a
press conference in Yerevan. The 2006 State Department
International Religious Freedom Report does not mention this widely
reported demolition, although it does detail desecrations of other
cemeteries in several other countries, such as in Estonia, France,
Latvia, Poland, Lithuania and Germany.
10) Failure to maintain a balanced policy on Nagorno Karabagh
The Bush Administration, to its credit, took an early initiative to
help resolve the Nagorno Karabagh issue in the form of the Key West
summit meeting in 2001 between Secretary of State Powell and the
presidents of Armenia and Azerbaijan. After Azerbaijan’s failure to
honor its Key West commitments, however, the Administration failed
to hold Azerbaijan accountable for unilaterally stalling the
Nagorno Karabagh peace process. The negative impact of our
unbalanced policy toward this conflict was compounded last year by
the publication, in the State Department’s annual Human Rights
report, of inaccurate official claims that Armenia occupies Nagorno
Karabagh and Azerbaijan. Although this error was not repeated in
this year’s report, it did represent a setback to the peace process
and undermined our role as an honest broker in this conflict.
11) Taxpayer financing of the Baku-Ceyhan bypass of Armenia
The Bush Administration, despite bipartisan Congressional
opposition, supported American taxpayer-funded subsidies for the
politically motivated Baku-Ceyhan pipeline route that, at the
insistence of both Turkey and Azerbaijan, bypassed Armenia, to its
significant economic detriment.
12) Failure to effectively pressure Turkey and Azerbaijan to end
their blockades
The Bush Administration has not forcefully condemned the Turkish
and Azerbaijani blockades as clear violations of international law,
nor, outside of occasional public statements, has it taken any
meaningful steps to pressure the Turkish or Azerbaijani governments
to end their illegal border closures against land-locked Armenia.
13) Neglect of relations with the Armenian American community
Breaking with the tradition of the last several Administrations,
President Bush and his Secretaries of State failed to reach out in
any meaningful way to our nation’s one and a half million citizens
of Armenian heritage. Over the past seven years, the collective
leadership of the Armenian American community was neither invited
to the White House to consult with the President, or asked by the
Secretary of State to meet and discuss our community’s priorities.
We would welcome the opportunity for the collective leadership of
the Armenian American community to meet with you to discuss each of
these issues, and others, in greater detail. We are confident
that, if such a meeting can be arranged, we would benefit
considerably from your insights and perspectives, and that,
together, we will be able to explore ways in which we can work
together toward our shared aims during the coming months.
Thank you for your review of our concerns and for your
consideration of our request.
Sincerely,
[signed]
Kenneth V. Hachikian
Chairman