TURKEY SETS CONDITIONS FOR SENDING AMBASSADOR BACK TO U.S.

ArmInfo
2010-03-24 12:14:00

ArmInfo. Turkey will not send its ambassador back to Washington until
the Obama administration and Congress make it clear that they will
not judge Turkish history, Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu
said Tuesday.

The Washington Post reported that the country recalled its envoy,
Namik Tan, last month after the House Foreign Affairs Committee passed
a resolution labeling Turkey’s killings of 1.5 million Armenians in
1915 as genocide.

"We cannot accept the judgment of members of the foreign relations
committee, who do not know anything about the history," Davutoglu
said in an interview in Ankara.

Davutoglu set two conditions for Tan’s return: The administration
and Congress must show they will refrain from deciding what he called
"our history," and the countries "should agree to develop our strategic
alliance," he said.

Turkish officials are waiting to see how Obama will phrase a statement
April 24, the anniversary of the start of the massacre.

From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress