EU-DIGEST

Labels: Armenian Genocide, China, Turkey, US, US Congress

The Armenian Question Answered - by Michael van der Galien

As for genocide claims, the truth is slowly coming out. As Turks now turn their attention to the global political arena and their image abroad, people will learn and know that Turks will never concede that defending one’s land from foreign invasion is genocide.

If anyone is to blame or should apologize for what happened to Ottoman Armenians, it is England, France, Russia and the U.S. They encouraged, supported and armed Ottoman Armenian militants, and then abandoned them when it became clear Armenian militias could not defeat Turkish Nationalist forces who were defending their lands, and fighting for their lives, their independence and freedom from occupation.

Labels: Armenian Genocide

Israel Lobby May Be Source of Armenian Genocide Resolution - by Wayne Madsen

Experts on U.S.-Turkish relations in Washington report that the recent deterioration in relations between Washington and Ankara are primarily due to the American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC) and Turkey's other erstwhile friends, including the Anti-Defamation League (ADL), pulling support for their former allies in Turkey because of increasingly closer Turkish relations with both Syria and Iran -- two countries that are being targeted by the neocon cells operating in Vice President Dick Cheney's office and among Kadima and Likud circles in Jerusalem.In fact, Turkey, Syria, and Iran are cooperating in battling PKK forces on their respective territories. Israel's Mossad has re-established close links with the Kurds in the region. It appears that Israel is willing to sacrifice its past close relations with Turkey in its support for the Kurds and creating tension between the non-Arab powers in the region -- Iran, Turkey, and the Kurds. The election of Turkish Islamist-oriented Abdullah Gul as President of a secular-oriented Turkey was a green light for AIPAC, the ADL, and the neocons and other right-wing networks in Washington to turn up the heat on Ankara. The subsequent threat by Turkey to deploy troops into northern Iraq to go after Kurdish guerrillas, some of whom are reportedly backed by the Mossad and U.S. paramilitary private security forces, was enough to cause the Israel Lobby to break their historic links to the Turks. Adding to the anger of the Israel Lobby was the recent natural gas deal inked between Syria, Iran, and Turkey. Iran will provide Syria with Iranian gas via Turkish pipelines.

Labels: Armenian Genocide, Israel, Israel Lobby, Kurdish PKK terrorists, Turkey

Turkish 'Genocide' Bill Loses House Support - by DAVID ROGERS

Pressed by the White House and Turkish lobby, as many as 11 House members have withdrawn as co-sponsors of a resolution labeling the mass killings of Armenians under the Ottoman Empire a century ago as "genocide." Seven members pulled their names from the measure Monday and four more as of Tuesday, leaving passage of the bill in doubt. The rapid erosion signals momentum has shifted in favor of Turkey and the Bush administration, which has urged the Democratic leadership to block a vote on the resolution, reported from the House Foreign Affairs Committee last week.

"It couldn't pass if it came up today," said Rep. John Murtha (D., Pa.) who has played a major role behind-the-scenes in helping to pull members off the bill. While not ready to give up the fight, Rep. Adam Schiff (D., Cal.), the chief sponsor, conceded the powers arrayed against him.Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D., Calif.) remains supportive nonetheless and has pledged to allow a vote this year. But if support continues to erode, her allies say she won't bring the measure up if it only means an embarrassing defeat.

Labels: Armenian Genocide, Turkey

Bill to Condemn Genocide in Jeopardy - by Anne Flaherty

A House vote to label the century-old deaths of Armenians as genocide was in jeopardy Tuesday after several Democrats withdrew their support and sounded alarms it could cripple U.S. relations with Turkey. The loss of support is a major setback to House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and other Democratic leaders on Capitol Hill, who have fiercely defended the resolution to Republicans and the Bush administration as a moral imperative in condemning the World War I-era killings of up to 1.5 million Armenians by Ottoman Turks. President Bush called Pelosi on Tuesday to ask her not to call for a House vote on the resolution.

"The president and the speaker exchanged candid views on the subject and the speaker explained the strong bipartisan support in the House for the resolution," Pelosi spokesman Nadeam Elshami said, noting that Bush initiated the phone call.

Labels: Armenian Genocide, EU, Turkey, US Congress

Turkish and US relations: Led astray - by Stephen Kinzer

Pushing the Armenian genocide resolution through Congress is a reckless act that reflects the corruption of the American political system.Last year's Pulitzer prize for non-fiction was awarded to a devastating book called Imperial Reckoning. It is a triumph of historical research that accuses Britain of having committed genocide in Kenya during the 1950s. Will the United States Congress endorse this claim and pass a resolution condemning Britain? Of course not. Congress is not equipped to make such judgments. More important, that is not the job of Congress. It exists to make laws, no to condemn evil-doers from past centuries.There is another reason why Congress will never condemn the British for killing hundreds of thousands of Kenyans, and for what Imperial Reckoning calls "their campaign of terror, dehumanizing torture and genocide." Kenyans in the United States do not have a powerful lobby that wins influence in Washington by channeling millions of dollars into election campaigns.

That is not the case with Armenian-Americans. After years of intense effort, they have persuaded the house committee on foreign affairs to approve a resolution declaring that Turks were guilty of genocide against Armenians in eastern Anatolia during the spring of 1915. The speaker of the house, Nancy Pelosi, has pledged to bring this resolution to a vote by the full House, where it will almost certainly pass. In doing so, she satisfies the wealthy Armenian community in her home state of California. She also commits a reckless act that reflects the deep corruption of the American political system - and does no good for Armenia or Armenians.

Labels: Armenian Genocide, EU, Turks, USA

Bill Maher Makes Fun of House Foreign Relations Committee vote on the so called Armenian Genocide

Watch the video clip of Bill Maher as he pokes fun at the Foreign Relations committee vote on the so-called Armenian Genocide.

Labels: Armenian Genocide, Bill Mahr

The Turkish president has denounced a vote by a committee of the US Congress recognizing as genocide the 1915 mass killings of Armenians by Ottoman Turks. President Abdullah Gul said the decision was unacceptable and had no validity for Turkey, which has always denied any genocide took place.The genocide bill passed in the House Foreign Affairs Committee by 27 votes to 21 - the first step towards holding a vote in the House of Representatives. Turkey could now limit its cooperation with the US in the war on terror and provision of military bases near Iraq.

Note EU-Digest: The powerful and financially strong Armenian lobby has once again turned political opinion in their favor on an unproven issue which happened during the Ottoman Empire. If every country who believed they experienced a genocide in their past history started claiming recognition of these crimes, we would find ourselves in an endless process of futile discussions. Why isn't anyone speaking of the French massacres in Algeria, or those of the Dutch in Indonesia, the British in India, the Japanese in China, and the US extermination of the Indians. The Armenians, unfortunately, have turned this issue into an industry. It's big bucks and politicians are being bought. Without it, no one would even know that Armenia (population 1.5 million) existed. Isn't it time to drop this issue and let the Armenians and Turks work it out among themselves?

Labels: Armenian Genocide, EU, Turkey, US