TURKISH MOVE TO RECALL ENVOY ‘REGRETTABLE,’ US OFFICIAL SAYS
Fulya Ozerkan

Hurriyet
March 16 2010
Turkey

US Deputy Secretary of State James Steinberg. AA photo

A senior U.S. official has expressed regret over the Turkish
government’s decision to recall its ambassador in a show of protest
against a House committee resolution labeling the 1915 killings of
Armenians as "genocide."

"The decision to recall the ambassador is regrettable; we have a policy
of engagement and I hope Turkey has the same policy with the U.S.,"
James B. Steinberg, the No. 2 official at the U.S. State Department,
said Monday in an address to the Atlantic Council, a think tank in
Washington, D.C.

"I think whatever the differences with Congress on this issue, it is
important that we engage and that we talk about these areas," he said.

An infuriated Turkey recalled Ambassador Namık Tan shortly after the
U.S. House Foreign Affairs Committee narrowly approved a resolution
calling on President Barack Obama to ensure that U.S. foreign policy
reflects an acknowledgment of the Armenian "genocide" and to label
the 1915 killings as such in his annual statement.

Though the Obama administration opposed the measure, Turkey considers
the last-minute move to be "too little, too late."

Ankara is now seeking assurances from the U.S. administration that
the non-binding resolution will not go to a vote by the full House
of Representatives. In recent remarks, Turkish Prime Minister Recep
Tayyip Erdogan said Turkey was not ready to return its ambassador
"as long as the situation does not get any clearer."

Turkey had already warned that such measures taken up in parliaments
by politicians would harm efforts to normalize the country’s troubled
ties with Armenia. The U.S. vote was followed by a similar vote in
Swedish parliament last week; both initiatives came after the signing
of the protocols in October establishing diplomatic relations between
Turkey and Armenia.

"We have tremendous admiration and respect for prime minister [Erdogan]
for his efforts on the Turkey-Armenia protocols," Steinberg said. "We
think that was a courageous decision."

"That was in Turkey’s interest, but it also provided leadership in
the region," the U.S. official added. "We look forward to working
with Turkey on those questions because we think Turkey can play a
very constructive and stabilizing role."

The State Department official emphasized that Turkey is an important
partner in NATO and in international cooperation in Iraq.

"We think we have a strong and constructive engagement with Turkey and
I hope that the Turkish leadership understands the strong importance
we place on this and continues to work with us to achieve our common
objectives," he said.

Another senior U.S. official, Defense Secretary Robert Gates, said
in previous remarks that the United States felt very strongly that
passing the resolution was a mistake.

A resolution of that kind could be very damaging to U.S.-Turkey
relations, Gates said.