US JEWISH GROUPS BACK TURKEY IN ARMENIAN GENOCIDE ISSUE
Tert.am
12:37 ~U 18.01.10
The chill in relations between Jerusalem and Ankara is resulting
in a few cold winds blowing through Washington as well, though ties
between Turkey and its traditional Western, pro-Israel backers haven’t
reached the deep-freeze stage, according to several sources, reports
The Jerusalem Post.
Several Jewish groups have historically worked closely with Turkey. On
Armenia, for instance, some Jewish groups have pushed members of
Congress not to pass resolutions labeling Turkey’s role in World War
I massacres as genocide.
"Turkey’s hostility to Israel will naturally have ramifications when
political issues regarding Turkey arrive on these shores. How could
it not?" asked one Jewish leader in Washington, speaking on condition
of anonymity. "Friends of Israel across the government and across
the non-governmental sector will take notice."
Another Jewish official pointed out, "The relationship with Turkey
is bigger than Erdogan" and the current Islamic government. That
government, led by Erdogan’s AKP party, has downgraded the historically
close relationship between the two non-Arab countries cultivated by
earlier secular governments.
But the Anti-Defamation League (ADL), a Jewish organization with
some of the strongest ties to Turkey, said it was encouraged by the
appointment of a new ambassador to the United States, Namik Tan, who
last served as ambassador to Israel and before that as a liaison to
the Jewish community in a lower-ranking post in Washington.
He also said that on the issue of the Armenian massacres, the ADL’s
position hadn’t changed.
"We continue to believe that there was a genocide, but there’s no
useful purpose in the House or the Senate passing a resolution on
it at this time," he explained. "It’s a principled post that the
better way of addressing this issue is for the Armenians and the
Turks to move forward with this through the historical commission"
that’s been established.