Turkey Threatens to Recall Ambassador if Genocide Bill Passes

ANKARA (Reuters)–Turkey threatened Thursday to recall its ambassador if a U.S. congressional panel votes to recognize the Armenian Genocide, a government official said.

NATO-member Turkey has said its ties with the U.S. would be damaged and Ankara’s efforts to normalize relations with Armenia could be endangered if the resolution is passed by U.S. lawmakers.

“We are open to all options,” said a government official when asked if Turkey would be willing to recall its ambassador to the United States should the bill be passed.

Ankara recalled its ambassador in 2007 for consultations after a U.S. panel approved a similar bill.

“But nobody should forget that the situation is different now than it was in 2007. We are in the process of normalizing ties with Armenia, so the stakes are higher,” he said.

Turkey and Armenia signed a protocol last year to normalize relations but the papers are yet to pass through the parliament of either country.

President Barack Obama and Turkish President Abdullah Gul had a phone conversation on Wednesday to discuss Turkey’s position on the Armenia bill.

Obama visited Turkey last April. His administration sees Turkey as a key ally whose help it needs in solving confrontations from Iran to Afghanistan.

“We are at a stage when U.S.-Turkish ties need maximum cooperation. Everybody should consider the importance of U.S.-Turkish relations for regional and global stability,” Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu told a news conference on Thursday.

The non-binding resolution, to be voted by the House Foreign Affairs Committee, would call on Obama to ensure U.S. policy formally refers to the massacre as genocide and to use that term when he delivers his annual message on the issue in April—something Obama avoided doing last year.

4 Comments

  1. He should keep his stupid message to himself. Unless you are going to refer to it as Genocide, as you promised before we elected you, don’t even waste my time with another BS speech.

  2. Please Dr. Jeshmardian don’t use religious word,
    Arabs suffered from Turks more than Armenians,
    They destroyed their morals for fourhanded years.
    Arab did not kill  a one Armenian,
    Arabs did not force Armenians to change their religion,
    Arabs did not force them to speak Arabic at home,
    They know about genocide more than Europeans,
    Turks are Turks, genetically born Turks, they will stay Turks.
    English who possess christian kingdom and a Queen who is christian,
    till now did not recognize our genocide!
    The Arab Poet Assad Rustom started his poem by saying,
    “The Sons of Turks, You are Never Muslims”

  3. Shame on a populace who kill and deny
    They got all lands and belonging of innocent people, unarmed
    Is this a humanity I ask?
    They did and slayed* one by one… with out asking their god.
    My lands are still with them,
    They killed my grandfather ‘Mihran’ and all his relatives and now they deny
    His Uncle was a famous lawyer in town–Garabed Dabbaghian, is this a lie?
    I repeat, shame on populace who kill and deny.
    I wonder…What sort of humans they are ?
    ___________________
    * Slayed: lyric word for slain

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