Armenian Assembly of America
1140 19th Street, NW, Suite 600
Washington, DC 20036
Phone: 202-393-3434
Fax: 202-638-4904
Email: info@aaainc.org
Web:
PRESS RELEASE
March 17, 2009
Contact: Michael A Zachariades
Email: mzachariades@aaainc.org
Phone: (202) 393-3434
PRESIDENT OBAMA’S PLANNED TRIP TO TURKEY IS AN OPPORTUNITY, ARMENIAN
ASSEMBLY SUPPORTS PRESIDENT OBAMA’S EFFORTS TO AFFIRM THE TRUTH
Washington, DC – "As President Barack Obama plans his trip to Turkey
next month, we would like to express our support for this decision,"
said Armenian Assembly of America (Assembly) Executive Director Bryan
Ardouny. "An irreversible trend has commenced in Turkey and President
Obama’s visit presents a unique opportunity for the President to
reinforce this message, as well as his own statements reaffirming the
historical truth of the Armenian Genocide."
The Assembly wholeheartedly agrees with President Obama, Vice President
Biden and Secretary of State Clinton that the Armenian Genocide is an
historical fact that must be affirmed. As then Senator Obama stated
"America deserves a leader who speaks truthfully about the Armenian
Genocide and responds forcefully to all genocides."
The Assembly looks forward to change in Washington, including the
repudiation and reversal of the Bush Administration’s doctrine that
disallowed State Department officials to publicly acknowledge the
Armenian Genocide, and what our own U.S. Ambassador to the Ottoman
Empire, Henry Morgenthau, described as a campaign of race extermination.
The Assembly is encouraged by the recent signs of rapprochement between
Turkey and Armenia, and commends Armenia’s President Serzh Sargsyan for
his bold actions. Normalization of relations and Turkey’s lifting of its
15-year long blockade of Armenia should not be held hostage to U.S.
reaffirmation of the Armenian Genocide.
Established in 1972, the Armenian Assembly of America is the largest
Washington-based nationwide organization promoting public understanding
and awareness of Armenian issues. The Assembly is a 501(c)(3) tax-exempt
membership organization.
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