Author: Kharatian Ani

DEMOCRATS’ RECKLESS RESOLUTION

WorldNetDaily, OR
Oct 16 2007

Why now, of all possible critical moments, are congressional Democrats
insisting on passing a resolution guaranteed to offend Turkey,
our vital ally in the Iraq war, by denouncing the Ottoman Empire’s
century-old massacre of Armenians as a "genocide"?

Nancy Pelosi and her cohorts have been warned that Turkey will
be deeply offended by the move and may even take punitive action
against us by withdrawing their permission for us to use Incirlik
Air Base, through which well more than half of our air cargo passes
in route to supply our troops in Iraq. Human Events editor Jed Babbin
reports that some 95 percent of the new MRAP (mine-resistant, ambush
protected) vehicles, designed to save our troops’ lives, pass through
Incirlik. Also as a result, Turkey might decide to attack Kurdish
terrorist forces against our strong urging not to do so.

What on earth are Democrats trying to pull here? They are the same
people that barely blanch when Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad
denies the Holocaust. It’s not like we need to worry about offending
Iran, a charter member of the Axis of Evil and by last count a sworn
enemy of the United States, actively working to defeat us in Iraq.

Democrats constantly castigate President Bush for alienating the
international community by "going it alone." Their presidential
candidates are united in promising that if their party recaptures the
White House, they’ll restore sound relations with foreign nations. In
a recent speech, the irrepressibly garrulous Bill Clinton stressed
that this would be a major theme in the next Clinton co-presidency.

But are Democratic Party leaders, who claim to be such staunch
supporters of our troops, concerned about jeopardizing their
indispensable supply lines? Are they the slightest bit nervous that
in response to a House committee vote on this resolution, Turkey has
already recalled its ambassador, Nabi Sensoy, for consultation?

Apparently not. When a seemingly incredulous Brit Hume questioned
House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer about the resolution considering
the high stakes involved, Hoyer cavalierly responded, "Turkey’s help
to us is vital, but more vital is the United States’ help to Turkey."

In other words, Turkey needs us more than we need them – presumably
implying Turkey wouldn’t dare cut off our supply lines.

But Turkey has denied our troops access before – as recently as 2003.

More than that, this idea that other countries need us more than we
need them could be said about almost any allies Democrats complain the
Bush administration has alienated. What if President Bush had responded
to Democratic complaints in the same high-handed manner Democrats are
exhibiting today, saying, "Our allies need us more than we need them"?

Given that there is nothing to be gained and so much to be lost by
the proposed congressional resolution, how can we not be suspect,
as Jed Babbin implies, that congressional Democrats might be trying
to effect a withdrawal of our troops from Iraq indirectly? Is this
suspicion really far-fetched?

They’ve tried similar ploys, like a "dwell-time" amendment attached
to the defense policy bill that would have mandated that troops have
as much time at home between deployments to Iraq and Afghanistan as
they had in those countries. This would have virtually guaranteed we
didn’t have enough manpower to complete the mission – one of several
"slow bleed" tactics advanced by Democrats to undermine our prosecution
of the war.

In that case, they at least have the cover of arguing that they are
forcing longer stateside missions on behalf of the troops. Their
motive there was suspicious but at least ambiguous. But there is no
upside to their proposed resolution designed to offend Turkey. None.

I can think of only one other possible explanation for the Democrats’
gratuitous insult of our vital ally during time of war. Their worldview
often compels them to pursue actions driven by their so-called good
intentions – even when those actions are sure to result in adverse
consequences to their intended beneficiaries, such as with promoting
expansive welfare, affirmative action, nationalized health care,
minimum wage laws, gun control and radical environmental measures,
or opposing tax cuts and school choice.

But in the unlikely event that the Democrats’ motive isn’t to
undercut our mission in Iraq, it might as well be – and they ought
to be held accountable just as sternly as if it were. To the extent
the resolution imperils American troops, it is egregiously reckless
and indefensible at all levels.

This must not pass without loud and fierce opposition. President
Bush and Republican congressional representatives, along with every
conservative commentator in this nation, should mobilize to expose
the Democrats’ proposed course of action as an outrageous assault
on our fighting forces – not to score political points but to deter
these misguided renegades from endangering our troops. This appalling
stunt must not be permitted to proceed.

p?ARTICLE_ID=58157

AN EGREGIOUSLY RECKLESS RESOLUTION
by David Limbaugh

Human Events, DC
Oct 16 2007

Why now, of all possible critical moments, are congressional Democrats
insisting on passing a resolution guaranteed to offend Turkey,
our vital ally in the Iraq War, by denouncing the Ottoman Empire’s
century-old massacre of Armenians as a "genocide"?

Nancy Pelosi and her cohorts have been warned that Turkey will
be deeply offended by the move and may even take punitive action
against us by withdrawing their permission for us to use Incirlik
Air Base, through which well more than half of our air cargo passes
in route to supply our troops in Iraq. Human Events editor Jed Babbin
reports that some 95 percent of the new MRAP (mine-resistant, ambush
protected) vehicles, designed to save our troops’ lives, pass through
Incirlik. Also as a result, Turkey might decide to attack Kurdish
terrorist forces against our strong urging not to do so.

What on earth are Democrats trying to pull here? They are the same
people that barely blanch when Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad
denies the Holocaust. It’s not like we need to worry about offending
Iran, a charter member of the Axis of Evil and by last count a sworn
enemy of the United States, actively working to defeat us in Iraq.

Democrats constantly castigate President Bush for alienating the
international community by "going it alone." Their presidential
candidates are united in promising that if their party recaptures the
White House, they’ll restore sound relations with foreign nations. In
a recent speech, the irrepressibly garrulous Bill Clinton stressed
that this would be a major theme in the next Clinton co-presidency.

But are Democratic Party leaders, who claim to be such staunch
supporters of our troops, concerned about jeopardizing their
indispensable supply lines? Are they the slightest bit nervous that
in response to a House committee vote on this resolution, Turkey has
already recalled its ambassador, Nabi Sensoy, for consultation?

Apparently not. When a seemingly incredulous Brit Hume questioned
House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer about the resolution considering
the high stakes involved, Hoyer cavalierly responded, "Turkey’s help
to us is vital, but more vital is the United States’ help to Turkey."

In other words, Turkey needs us more than we need them — presumably
implying Turkey wouldn’t dare cut off our supply lines.

But Turkey has denied our troops access before — as recently as
2003. More than that, this idea that other countries need us more
than we need them could be said about almost any allies Democrats
complain the Bush administration has alienated. What if President
Bush had responded to Democratic complaints in the same high-handed
manner Democrats are exhibiting today, saying, "Our allies need us
more than we need them?"

Given that there is nothing to be gained and so much to be lost by
the proposed congressional resolution, how can we not be suspect,
as Jed Babbin implies, that congressional Democrats might be trying
to effect a withdrawal of our troops from Iraq indirectly? Is this
suspicion really far-fetched?

They’ve tried similar ploys, like a "dwell-time" amendment attached
to the Defense policy bill that would have mandated that troops have
as much time at home between deployments to Iraq and Afghanistan as
they had in those countries. This would have virtually guaranteed we
didn’t have enough manpower to complete the mission — one of several
"slow bleed" tactics advanced by Democrats to undermine our prosecution
of the war.

In that case, they at least have the cover of arguing that they are
forcing longer stateside missions on behalf of the troops. Their
motive there was suspicious but at least ambiguous. But there is no
upside to their proposed resolution designed to offend Turkey. None.

I can think of only one other possible explanation for the Democrats’
gratuitous insult of our vital ally during time of war.

Their worldview often compels them to pursue actions driven by their
so-called good intentions — even when those actions are sure to
result in adverse consequences to their intended beneficiaries, such
as with promoting expansive welfare, affirmative action, nationalized
health care, minimum wage laws, gun control and radical environmental
measures, or opposing tax cuts and school choice.

But in the unlikely event that the Democrats’ motive isn’t to undercut
our mission in Iraq, it might as well be — and they ought to be
held accountable just as sternly as if it were. To the extent the
resolution imperils American troops, it is egregiously reckless and
indefensible at all levels.

This must not pass without loud and fierce opposition. President
Bush and Republican congressional representatives, along with every
conservative commentator in this nation, should mobilize to expose
the Democrats’ proposed course of action as an outrageous assault
on our fighting forces — not to score political points but to deter
these misguided renegades from endangering our troops.

This appalling stunt must not be permitted to proceed.

Mr. Limbaugh is a nationally syndicated columnist and author of
Bankrupt: The Moral and Intellectual Bankruptcy of Today’s Democratic
Party, Absolute Power and Persecution.

hp?id=22869

JUST CURIOUS (RE THE ARMENIAN GENOCIDE VOTE)

The Atlantic Online
Oct 16 2007

Before leaving China, I hadn’t heard about the House of
Representatives’ vote on a resolution condemning Turkey for the
Armenian genocide of the World War I era.

Now that I’ve heard about it, I find that it leads naturally to
this question:

Is America insane??????

To be more precise: have the Congressional Democratic leaders lost
their minds in not finding a way to bottle up this destructive and
self-righteously posturing measure?

Maybe they think that the U.S. has so many friends in the Islamic
world, especially in countries bordering Iraq, that it should go out
of its way to make new enemies?

Or — and this is truly appalling possibility — perhaps they think
that America’s moral standing is so high at the moment that we will
be admired and thanked worldwide for delivering condemnations of sins
committed in the waning days of the Ottoman Empire?

Why not go all the way? How about a resolution condemning China for
the millions who suffered in the Cultural Revolution and the tens
of millions starved during the Great Leap Forward – right as we’re
seeking China’s help on Burma, North Korea, the environment, etc? I
mean, for each Armenian the Ottoman Turks slaughtered, at least ten
Chinese citizens perished at the hands of the regime whose successors
still rule the country. And the government’s official stance of denial
is just about as strong. So, why not just tell them they were evil? The
timing would be especially nice during China’s current Party Congress.

I’m sure we could get a unanimous vote for a resolution condemning
North Korea for any of a hundred grievous offenses; that would
be a good complement to the recent nuclear deal. Why not one
denouncing Russia for the Czarist pogroms, to accompany efforts to
reason with/rein in Putin? Maybe another condemning England for its
subjugation and slaughter of the Scots, to say nothing of the Irish –
while also asking Gordon Brown to stay the course in Iraq? What about
Australia for its historic treatment of the Aborigines? Or the current
nations of West Africa for their role in the slave trade?

The Armenian genocide was real; many Turks pretend it wasn’t. They
are wrong, and we should stand for what’s right. But it’s hard to
think of a more willfully self-indulgent step than lecturing Turkey’s
current government and people 90 years late.

s/2007/10/just_curious_re_the_armenian_g.php

GEORGIA URGES UN TO RECOGNISE ETHNIC CLEANSING AGAINST GEORGIANS IN ABKHAZIA

ITAR-TASS, Russia
Oct 16 2007

TBILISI, October 15 (Itar-Tass) — Georgia will urge the United
Nations to recognise ethnic cleansing against Georgians in Abkhazia
in 1992-1993, Georgian President Mikhail Saakashvili said on Monday.

"It is very important" that the U.N. Security Council resolution on
the on the Georgian-Abkhazian conflict adopted on Monday "for the
first time states the unconditional right of all refuges to return to
all parts of Abkhazia and specifies the mechanisms for their return,
but we expect more from the United Nations", the president said.

"We will insist that the United Nations not just engage in general
discussions about several hundred residents of Abkhazia who had to
leave their houses and land in 1992-1993 but recognise that it was
ethnic cleansing with all ensuing legal acts and responsibility of
all persons who committed this ethnic cleansing," Saakashvili said.

He welcomed the resolution as a "diplomatic breakthrough" in the
peaceful resolution of the conflict.

"The resolution is a serious step in the peaceful resolution of the
Abkhazian conflict," he said.

In his view, "the most important aspect is that the resolution for the
first time states the rights of refugees from the Abkhazian region
to their property they had to leave in places of their permanent
residence."

"This means that the rights of refugees to their property are
protected not only by Georgian laws but also by a U.N. Security
Council resolution," he added.

"From now on all those who infringe upon the property of refugees they
left in the Abkhazian region will bear responsibility in accordance
with international law," he warned.

Saakashvili confirmed that Tbilisi favours "peaceful resolution of
the Abkhazian conflict".

"Georgian authorities will continue efforts towards a peaceful
and political settlement of the conflict and restoration of their
jurisdiction over the entire territory of the Abkhazian region,"
the president said.

Tbilisi has been controlling only one district in Abkhazia – the
upper part of the Kodori Gorge — since 1993.

At the beginning of September, Saakashvili said the sale by Sukhumi
authorities of Abkhazian refugees’ property left during the armed
conflict in 1992-1993 was unlawful.

"The property left in Abkhazia by local residents who have become
refugees belongs only to them. Any attempt to buy the land of flats
of refugees is unlawful and will be annulled by Georgian authorities,"
the president said.

Prior to the 1992-1993 conflict, 525,000 people lived in Abkhazia,
including 47 percent of Georgians, 18 percent of Abkhazians, and rest
were Russians, Armenians, Greeks, Jews, etc.

About 400,000 people left the Abkhazian region in 1993, including
240,000 Georgians. Since the end of the 1990s, about 45,000 Georgian
have spontaneously returned to the Gali district of Abkhazia. The
other refugees are living in other parts of Georgia, Russia, Ukraine,
Greece, Israel, and other countries.

KOCHARIAN’S VISIT TO EUROPE COINCIDED WITH ADOPTION OF RES. 106
By Marietta Khachatrian

AZG Armenian Daily
16/10/2007

The adoption of Resolution 106 on the Armenian Genocide at the House
Commission on Foreign Relations fairly coincided with the visit of
RA President Robert Kocharian to Europe, where he had meetings with
head of Eurocommission Manuel Baroso, Commissioner on Justice Franco
Fratini, Commissioner on Foreign Relations Benita Ferero-Waldner,
head of the Senate of Belgium Herman Van Rompa, head of EU Council
Xavier Solana and head of Europarliament Hans Pottering. Both the
integration with Europe and the international recognition of the
Armenian Genocide are crucial for Armenia’s foreign policy, and it
is very symbolic that positive shifts in both the directions occurred
in the same time period – last week.

The process of Armenia’s integration with Europe already reach the
point whence it cannot be turned backwards, and that was proved by
the Armenian President’s meeting with the highest officials of the
European structures. The next step of our success is the adoption of
the Resolution 106 by the House of Representatives and the consequent
reaction of other states.

PM SERGE SARGSYAN RECEIVED FIFA AND UEFA PRESIDENTS

armradio.am
16.10.2007 14:14

RA Prime Minister Serge Sargsyan today received FIFA President Joseph
Blatter and UEFA President Michel Platini. The meeting was attended by
RA Minister of Sport and Youth Affairs Armen Grigoryan and President
of the Football Federation Ruben Hayrapetyan.

The Prime Minister welcomes the visit of worl-known Joseph Blatter and
Michel Platini to Armenia and thanked the guests for the assistance
and support for the development of Armenian football. The FIFA and
UEFA Presidents noted that the assistance programs would hardly
succeed without Armenian Government’s participation.

The leaders of FIFA and UEFA noted that their objective is to provide
the young people with the opportunity to play football, to create
conditions for full self-expression in this sport.

On behalf of the Armenian Government, PM Sereg Saegsayn expressed
willingness to do the utmost to foster the development of football
in Armenia, underlining that RA Government greatly emphasizes
the importance of development of physical culture and sport in the
country. The Prime Minister praised the Football Federation of Armenia
and its leadership for the activity in the direction of development
of football in Armenia.

WHITE HOUSE AGAIN PRESSES CONGRESS ON ARMENIA

Agence France Presse
Oct 15 2007

ROGERS, United States (AFP) – The White House Monday strongly
discouraged Congress from approving, or even considering, a resolution
calling WWI mass killings of Armenians "genocide" which could bring
tough reprisals from Turkey.

"This is an important time for US-Turkish relations, and we would
strongly encourage the speaker not to bring this to a vote, and should
it come to a vote, we will strongly encourage members not to support
it," spokesman Tony Fratto said.

House speaker Nancy Pelosi on Sunday said she planned to put the bill
before the full House of Representatives. The House foreign affairs
committee last week branded the Ottoman Empire’s World War I massacre
of Armenians a genocide, angering Ankara.

Pelosi said Bush never had phoned her on the measure.

"I don’t know anything about plans for a phone call. But there should
be no question of the president’s views on this issue and the damage
that this resolution can do to our US foreign policy interests,"
added Fratto, aboard the president’s jet.

Armenians say at least 1.5 million of their people were killed from
1915 to 1917 under what they describe as an campaign of deportation
and murder by the Ottoman Empire. Turkey bitterly disputes the number
of dead and the characterization of the killings as a genocide.

Ankara’s angry reaction has fueled fears within the US administration
that it could lose access to a military base in Turkey, a NATO ally,
which provides a crucial staging ground for US supplies headed to
Iraq and Afghanistan.

Turkish Press
Oct 14 2007

Armenian Patriarch Mesrob Mutafyan: We Oppose This Resolution
Published: 10/14/2007

DEMRE – Mesrob Mutafyan, patriarch of Turkish Armenians, said on
Sunday that they opposed to the resolution regarding Armenian
allegations on the incidents of 1915 which was approved by the U.S.
House of Representatives Committee on Foreign Affairs.

Patriarch Mutafyan visited the Santa Clause Church in Demre town of
the southern city of Antalya.

He told reporters during the visit that the resolution became a tool
of domestic policy in the United States, and called on people to
exclude Turkish citizens of Armenian origin from discussions over the
issue.

He said that they will do everything in their power to prevent
passage of the resolution by the full House.

Recalling that Prime Minister Erdogan earlier proposed Armenia to set
up a joint commission of historians to deal with the issue, Mutafyan
added that it was a significant offer.

International Herald Tribune, France
Oct 13 2007

Armenian premier to visit Washington amid new tensions with Turkey
over genocide claim

The Associated Press
Published: October 13, 2007

WASHINGTON: Armenia’s prime minister is to arrive in Washington on
Wednesday for talks with U.S. officials a week after a congressional
committee roiled relations with Turkey by approving a resolution
labeling as genocide the World War I-era killings of Armenians by
Turks.

The timing of Prime Minister Serge Sarkisian’s visit could cause
further tensions with Turkey. Ankara has lashed out at Armenia for
encouraging the U.S. House of Representatives to pass the resolution.

But the visit was scheduled months ago, long before the congressional
committee scheduled its vote, according to the Armenian Embassy in
Washington. Sarkisian is expected to discuss economic cooperation and
security issues in two days of talks with senior officials including
Vice President Dick Cheney, Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice and
Defense Secretary Robert Gates.

Sarkisian plans to be in California Oct. 19-23 for meetings with
Armenian-American groups.

The trip comes at a time that relations between Washington and Ankara
have reached a recent low, as Turkey has protested the congressional
foray into a sensitive historical matter.

At issue is the killing of up to 1.5 million Armenians by Ottoman
Turks around the time of World War I, which many genocide scholars
consider the first genocide of the 20th century. Turkey denies that
the deaths constituted genocide, contending the toll has been
inflated, and those killed were victims of civil war and unrest that
killed Muslims as well as the overwhelmingly Christian Armenians.

A day after Wednesday’s vote in Washington, lawmakers in Armenia’s
parliament greeted the committee’s approval of the resolution with a
standing ovation.

Armenia’s President Robert Kocharian urged the United States to go
even further. Speaking in Belgium Thursday, he urged "a full
recognition by the United States of America of the fact of the
Armenian genocide."

President George W. Bush has continued the policy of previous
presidents that recognizes horrendous events almost a century ago but
refrains from describing them as an orchestrated genocide.

Indian Muslims, CA
Oct 12 2007

US Administration regrets House panel resolution, approved despite
cautioning on Turkish ties

Fri, 10/12/2007 – 02:38. International

WASHINGTON, Oct 11 (APP): The US administration has regretted a House
of Representative panel’s approval of a resolution that declares the
early 20th century deaths of Armenians as genocide, a move which it
said risked harming relations with Turkey, a key ally in the Iraq
war.

The US administration had Wednesday made an emphatic appeal to
Congress to discard legislation but the House Foreign Affairs
Committee defied all calls and voted Wednesday evening to approve the
non-binding measure, calling the mass deaths of Armenians that began
in 1915 genocide.

Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) has promised she will bring the
resolution to the full House for a vote. `We regret that the House
Foreign Affairs Committee has approved House Resolution 106 and sent
it on for consideration by the full House. The administration
continues strongly to oppose this resolution, passage of which may do
grave harm to U.S.-Turkish relations and to U.S. interests in Europe
and the Middle East,’ the State Department spokesman said.

The State Department also observed that the move will not `improve
Turkish-Armenian relations or advance reconciliation among Turks and
Armenians over the terrible events of 1915.’

The United States, it said, `recognizes the immense suffering of the
Armenian people due to mass killings’ and added it supports `a full
and fair accounting of the atrocities that befell as many as 1.5
million Armenians during World War I,’ which the passed resolution
`does not do.’

Turkey lobbied hard to kill the measure, launching a multimillion
dollar campaign and threatening to curtail its cooperation in the
Iraq war. President Bush, Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice and
Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates were joined by eight former
secretaries of state and three former defense secretaries in
condemning the proposal.

`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
Wednesday. According to The Washington Post, the committee’s
chairman, Rep. Tom Lantos (D-Calif.), said, `We have to weigh the
desire to express our solidarity with the Armenian people . . .
against the risk that it could cause young men and women in the
uniform of the United States armed services to pay an even heavier
price.’ Lantos supported the measure, as did most lawmakers from
California, whose large and influential Armenian American community
has pursued similar proposals for decades.

Nabi Sensoy, Turkey’s ambassador to the United States said Ankara
would continue its fight against the resolution.

`Why is Armenia not taking this to an international court? They are
trying to win this on political grounds, and they will never let go,’
he said. Armenian-American groups rejoiced over the resolution
approval.

Turkish officials and some historians say that the deaths more than
90 years ago resulted from forced relocations and widespread fighting
when the Ottoman Empire collapsed, not from a campaign of genocide –
and that hundreds of thousands of Turks also died in the same region
during that time.