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Description
The complication between Washington and Ankara began on Oct. 10 with a US Congressional committee's approval of a resolution calling the 1915-17 massacre of Armenians by Ottoman Turks a "genocide". Ankara called the decision "unacceptable", after warning that the vote could jeopardise US access to Incirlik. Turkey denies that a systematic genocide of 1.5m Armenians ever took place - a description and figure accepted by many historians - saying mass killing was carried out by both sides.
President Bush said the non-binding resolution "would do great harm to our relations with [Ankara]". He strongly urged US lawmakers to reject the resolution, saying: "We all deeply regret the tragic suffering of the Armenian people that began in 1915. But this resolution is not the right response to these historic mass killings and its passage would do great harm to relations with a key ally in NATO, and to the war on terror".
Bush spoke hours before the House Foreign Affairs Committee passed the resolution. The measure was sponsored by more than half of the full House, but panel members called the vote an "agonising" choice. The bill is essentially symbolic, but the impact... |
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