CSIS REPORT URGES OBAMA NOT TO RECOGNIZE GENOCIDE

200 9/04/02 | 13:15

Politics

A new report warns President Obama that recognizing the World War
I-era killings of Armenians as genocide – or not lobbying Congress to
ditch a bill recognizing as much – would be a bad foreign-policy move.

This according to "The Hill", a daily that focuses on developments and
news in the U.S. Congress.The Center for Strategic and International
Studies (CSIS) report released this week studies the future of
U.S. relations with Turkey, in advance of Obama’s visit to the
predominantly Muslim nation next Monday and Tuesday.

"A near-term uncertainty in the [American-Turkish] relationship is the
‘Armenian genocide resolution,’ " the report states. "If President
Obama takes no action to prevent congressional enactment of the
resolution … endorses the measure, or uses the word genocide
himself, the Turkish response will be harsh and trigger a bitter
breach in relations."

The resolution, introduced March 17 by Rep. Adam Schiff (D-Calif.) with
77 co-sponsors, now has 88 co-sponsors and has been referred to the
House Committee on Foreign Affairs.

Rep. Gresham Barrett (R-S.C.), a co-sponsor on the day of the bill’s
introduction, withdrew his sponsorship on March 23. The CSIS report,
introduced Monday by Zbigniew Brzezinski and Brent Scowcroft, says,
"Rather than seek to legislate history, the United States and
the international community should provide maximum encouragement
and support to the diplomatic rapprochement being pursued by the
governments of Turkey and Armenia, as well as to emerging regional
cooperation."

The report calls the bill "of foremost concern in bilateral relations,"
and said the issue has been "hanging like the sword of Damocles
over the relationship for 20 years." It adds that "there seems to
be a real danger of either the White House refraining from lobbying
against the resolution and thus permitting its passage or of a direct
acknowledgement through a presidential statement."

From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress