ARMENIAN GENOCIDE RESOLUTION CANNOT BE BLOCKED: U.S. DEPARTMENT OF STATE

news.am
March 18 2010
Armenia

The resolution on the recognition of Armenian Genocide adopted by
U.S. House Committee on Foreign Affairs would go forward despite
the position of Obama administration, U.S. Assistant Secretary for
European and Eurasian Affairs Philip Gordon told the journalists,
Associated Press reports.

He refuted any deal with congressional leaders to block the resolution.

"Congress is an independent body, and they are going to do what
they decide to do," Gordon emphasized in his speech at Brookings
Institution.

Meanwhile, Gordon said the vote slowed down U.S.-Turkey relations at
the time when the country is seeking assistance from Turkey to rein in
Iran’s nuke program. However, he added U.S. has not seen deterioration
in cooperation with Turkey on a wide range of foreign policy issues.

According to him, the resolution is an obstacle for Turkey-Armenia
normalization talks, however, the process did not come to a deadlock.

"I really think the leaders of two states are determined to do this,"
he underlined.

Obama administration thinks the historical issues are solved by
two countries within the framework of reconciliation talks, Gordon
outlined.

In his speech, Gordon called Turkey to exert pressure on Iran,
considering Ankara a major trading partner. He criticized Turkey for
not supporting the resolution at the International Atomic Energy Agency
(IAEA) demanding that Iran suspend construction of nuke facilities.

"While the international community has sought to present a single,
coordinated stance to Iran, Turkey at times makes inconsistent
statements," Gordon noted.