BAKERSFIELD, Calif. (KGET) — President Joe Biden is preparing to formally acknowledge that the systematic killing and deportation of hundreds of thousands of Armenians by the Ottoman Empire in modern-day Turkey more than a century ago, was genocide.

The anticipated move, something Biden had pledged to do as a candidate could further complicate an already tense relationship with Turkish leadership.

It it happens, it would make President Biden the first U.S. president to acknowledge the situation as genocide.

Rep. David Valadao was one of more than 100 lawmakers to send a letter to President Biden urging him to make an announcement.

In a statement, Rep. Valadao said:

“Formal recognition of the Armenian genocide is long overdue in the United States where so many Armenian-Americans continue to feel the pain of this tragedy. I urge President Biden to formally honor those affected by this atrocity and offer the Armenian-American community this validation they deserve.”

The National Day of Remembrance of the Armenian Genocide is observed each year on April 24.