Reuters, UK
Oct 14 2007
Armenia genocide measure to advance: U.S. lawmakers
By Mark Felsenthal
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – The top Democrat in the U.S. House of
Representatives on Sunday said she intends to press ahead on a
resolution calling the 1915 massacre of Armenians by Ottoman Turks
genocide, despite White House concerns it will damage relations with
Turkey, a key supporter of the Iraq war.
"I said if it passed the committee that we would bring it to the
floor," U.S. House of Representatives Speaker Nancy Pelosi said in an
interview on ABC television’s "This Week."
Pelosi, of California, said her determination to bring the measure to
a vote has not wavered even though President George W. Bush and his
Cabinet have warned the measure could interfere with Turkey’s support
for U.S. troops in Iraq.
"Some of the things that are harmful to our troops relate to values,"
Pelosi said. "I think that our troops are well-served when we declare
who we are as a country and increase the respect that people have for
us as a nation."
On Wednesday, a congressional committee approved the nonbinding
resolution, which was sponsored by a California lawmaker whose
district has a large Armenian-American constituency. The House of
Representatives is due to vote on the strictly symbolic measure by
mid-November. It is unclear if the Senate will consider a companion
bill.
Republicans called on Pelosi on Sunday to block the measure from
coming to a vote.
"Bringing this bill to the floor may be the most irresponsible thing
I’ve seen this new Congress do this year," House Minority Leader Jim
Boehner, an Ohio Republican, said on "Fox News Sunday."
The issue is highly sensitive in Turkey, where it is a crime to
describe those events as genocide. Turkey recalled its ambassador to
the United States after the committee vote.
Turkey’s military chief said on Sunday that ties between the United
States and Turkey would "never be the same again" if Congress
approves the resolution.
Pelosi said she has not been contacted directly about the resolution
by Bush, who voiced his concerns publicly last week.
"This resolution is not the right response to these historic mass
killings, and its passage would do great harm to our relations with a
key ally in NATO and in the global war on terror," Bush said at the
White House.
The administration fears the resolution could undermine U.S.
influence as it urges Turkey to refrain from any major military
operations in Northern Iraq. The Turkish government is planning to
seek parliamentary approval for military operations against a
militant group, the Kurdistan Workers Party, based in the mountains
of northern Iraq.