Hurriyet, Turkey
March 13 2009

‘Keep your genocide recognition pledge’

WASHINGTON – With nearly three weeks to go before U.S. President
Barack Obama’s planned visit to Turkey, leaders of pro-Armenian
lawmakers in the U.S. House of Representatives have urged him to keep
his campaign promise to recognize the 1915 incidents as "genocide."

Obama is expected to arrive in Turkey in early April at the end of a
European tour, during which he will attend international meetings in
London, Strasbourg and Prague.

During last year’s election campaign, Obama had pledged to recognize
the 1915 incidents as "genocide". But Turkey warns that any formal
U.S. recognition will damage U.S.-Turkish ties in a major and lasting
way.

Several analysts say Obama’s visit to Turkey would weaken the chances
of U.S. "genocide" recognition in the short term.

Letter to Obama

In an effort to push the matter onto the president’s agenda, four key
pro-Armenian lawmakers sent a letter to Obama, reminding him of his
pledge and calling on him to keep this promise.

Democratic congressmen Adam Schiff and Frank Pallone and Republican
congressmen George Radanovich and Mark Kirk signed the letter,
according to the Armenian Assembly of America (AAA), a leading
U.S.-Armenian group.The four members of congress thanked Obama for
last year’s promise, likening the Armenian deaths to the Holocaust.

"Whether it is today’s Sudanese government (which is accused of
genocide against the people of Darfur in Sudan) or yesterday’s Ottoman
empire, the perpetrators of genocide, as well as the victims, must
know that the United States will not shrink from confronting the
truth," the four lawmakers said.

"President Obama’s upcoming trip to Turkey presents a unique
opportunity to address the consequences of genocide and its denial,"
said Bryan Ardouny, the AAA’s executive director, also thanking the
four lawmakers for their initiative.