ANKARA: Congressman Urges Colleagues Not To Sign Pro-Armenian Legisl

CONGRESSMAN URGES COLLEAGUES NOT TO SIGN PRO-ARMENIAN LEGISLATION

Daily Sabah, Turkey
Feb 27 2015

DAILY SABAH

As the 100th anniversary of the 1915 incidents during World War I
nears, the U.S. representative for Pennsylvania’s 9th congressional
district urged congressmen not to take sides in the historical dispute
between Turkey and Armenia on the 1915 incidents and not to sign the
pro-Armenian legislation.

“I urge you to refrain from cosponsoring a resolution taking sides
in a historical dispute concerning events which occurred a hundred
years ago on the other side of the world. … I urge you to think
twice before signing on the legislation that could cause significant
damage to our relations in the region,” Representative Bill Shuster
said in a letter to the congressmen.

Referring to the pro-Armenian legislation, Shuster said that Congress
is being asked to officially sanction the events as the Armenian
“genocide” while ignoring the suffering of all other former Ottoman
people.

He continued his letter by saying that the U.S. should focus on closing
the gap between Turkey and Armenia that has existed for a century and
easing the tension between the countries instead of adding fuel to the
“1915 events” flames.

Shuster said that adopting the resolution would undermine U.S.

interests and cause the U.S. to lose one of its last allies in the
region that has collaborated in the fight against the Islamic State
of Iraq and al-Sham [ISIS] in close cooperation with the anti-ISIS
coalition led by the U.S.

“Turkey’s geostrategic position between Europe and the Middle East has
made the country an important NATO ally and an essential partner for
both the United States and European countries in combating extremism
in the region. As Lebanon, Syria, Armenia and Iraq continue to deepen
their political and economic partnerships with Iran and Russia, the
United States’ leverage in the region is rapidly diminishing. Adopting
the resolution would alienate a close ally and damage U.S. interests,”
he added.

U.S. Representative Yvette Clarke for the 9th Congressional District
of New York and Congressman Lee Zeldin announced that they would not
support the pro-Armenian legislation.

The year 2015 marks the 100th anniversary of both what Armenia
calls genocide and the Battle of Gallipoli in Canakkale province,
which marked a turnaround in favor of the Ottomans during World War
I against the Allied Forces.

Relations between Turkey and Armenia have historically been poor,
rooted in incidents that took place during World War I. The Armenian
diaspora and government describe the 1915 events as “genocide” and
have asked for compensation. Turkey says that although Armenians died
during forced relocations, many Turks also lost their lives in attacks
carried out by Armenian gangs in Anatolia. In April 2014, then Prime
Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan offered his condolences for the Armenian
deaths that occurred in 1915, a first for a Turkish statesman.

From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress