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NEWSWEEK: CONGRESS CAN HELP KEEP THE PATH TO RECONCILIATION OPEN IF IT IS WILLING TO DENY THE ARMENIAN-AMERICAN LOBBY THE INSTANT GRATIFICATION OF A GENOCIDE RESOLUTION
ArmInfo
2009-03-02 13:09:00
ArmInfo. Congress can help keep the path to reconciliation open
if it is willing to deny the Armenian-American lobby the instant
gratification of a genocide resolution, whites American Newsweek in
an item 'How to End Genocide Debate'?
The magazine writes: 'It's almost April, so Washington is gearing
up for another performance of the "Armenian Genocide Resolution
Spectacular," a regular event since 1984. Here's the historical
plotline: the Armenian-American lobby gets a few U.S. congressmen to
sponsor a resolution recognizing the 1915 massacre of Armenians in
what is now Eastern Turkey as a "genocide." Then other members of
the House are induced to support it. (Members of the House may not
be history buffs, but they understand the importance of stroking a
powerful domestic lobby.) Next, the Turkish government says Turkey
is too important to be insulted like this. In response, the American
administration, recognizing that Turkey is indeed a critical NATO ally
whose Incirlik Air Base is vital to the Iraq mission, starts twisting
congressional arms to abandon the resolution. Offstage, the Israeli
lobby, generally keen to boost Turkish- Israeli relations (though
less so this year), works against the resolution. Finally, the House
leadership reluctantly shelves the whole thing and the curtain falls.
Before staging this year's performance, however, Congress should
note that hitherto frozen relations between Armenia and Turkey are
now showing signs of melting, and that this may be the first step
toward reconciling the Turkish and Armenian peoples. In September,
Turkish President Abdullah Gul attended a Turkey-Armenia football match
in Yerevan at the invitation of Armenian President Serzh Sargsyan,
who recently met with Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan in
Davos. The two foreign ministers, Turkey's Ali Babacan and Armenia's
Eduard Nalbandian have also been meeting. Both have made optimistic
noises.
Progress has been possible because the Armenians have focused on the
concrete issue of opening the Armenian-Turkish border-a vital matter
to them since none of their other neighbors (Azerbaijan, Georgia and
Iran) can offer a viable trade route to the West. Both sides have
wisely avoided the genocide dispute, surely recognizing it will have
to be dealt with eventually but that developing economic ties will
make it easier to do so.
Lingering in the background, however, is the Armenian diaspora's
passionate insistence that there was a genocide-and its mirror
image in the fury of the Turkish people denying it. Right or wrong
is not the point. No Turkish government could contemplate opening
the Armenian border with this issue front and center, and Congress
should re cognize that a genocide resolution would put it there.
In all probability, Turkey and Armenia can only resolve the genocide
dispute if they recognize that "was it a genocide?" may be the ultimate
question, but it is not the most important one today. To those aiming
for reconciliation, two questions outrank it: what common facts can
Turks and Armenians be brought to accept, and is the common ground
sufficient for both sides to start binding up the wounds? To this
end, Erdogan's proposal to establish a joint historical commission
should be pursued. Though Armenia has rejected the idea so far-largely
because it is winning its argument on the world stage-the government
has softened its stance recently. If the aim is reconciliation,
persuading the Turks to abandon the blanket denial they are taught
as schoolchildren is what counts.
Progress is not as implausible as it sounds. In the early days of the
Republic, Kemal Ataturk, who was not personally implicated, described
the Armenian massacres as "shameful acts." No ex-Ottoman officials
were investigated, however, as Turkey needed the newly minted heroes
of its War of Independence to have no stain on their characters. Today,
Erdogan will accept an investigation. In return, Armenia must accept a
reciprocal investigation into the Ottoman Armenians, who fought with
the sultan's Russian enemy, and their responsibility for massacres
of Turks and Kurds.
Weaving together these two violently oppo sed historical perspectives
will take time and patience. As important as the final answer, however,
is the development of empathy across the divide.
Congress can help keep the path to reconciliation open if it is
willing to deny the Armenian-American lobby the instant gratification
of a genocide resolution. Surely doing so would be far better than
repeating the exercises of the last 25 years over and over again until
a resolution finally passes and all the House's leverage over Turkey
evaporates, along with most of the good will in the Turkish-American
alliance, and maybe even the alliance itself. For its part, the
Armenian diaspora might even support reconciliation if only as its
second choice.
Finally, good relations between Turkey and Armenia would further
U.S. objectives in the Caucasus. The proposed hydrocarbon corridor
through the Caucasus from Central Asia looks much more secure in the
context of Turkish-Armenian friendship, and it might give Armenia
the confidence to break with the status quo in the longstanding
Nagorno-Karabakh dispute with neighboring Azerbaijan. Congress
and others should recognize that this year holds real promise for
the beginning of reconciliation between the Turkish and Armenian
peoples. If nothing comes of it, Congress can always return to
a resolution'.
ArmInfo
2009-03-02 13:09:00
ArmInfo. Congress can help keep the path to reconciliation open
if it is willing to deny the Armenian-American lobby the instant
gratification of a genocide resolution, whites American Newsweek in
an item 'How to End Genocide Debate'?
The magazine writes: 'It's almost April, so Washington is gearing
up for another performance of the "Armenian Genocide Resolution
Spectacular," a regular event since 1984. Here's the historical
plotline: the Armenian-American lobby gets a few U.S. congressmen to
sponsor a resolution recognizing the 1915 massacre of Armenians in
what is now Eastern Turkey as a "genocide." Then other members of
the House are induced to support it. (Members of the House may not
be history buffs, but they understand the importance of stroking a
powerful domestic lobby.) Next, the Turkish government says Turkey
is too important to be insulted like this. In response, the American
administration, recognizing that Turkey is indeed a critical NATO ally
whose Incirlik Air Base is vital to the Iraq mission, starts twisting
congressional arms to abandon the resolution. Offstage, the Israeli
lobby, generally keen to boost Turkish- Israeli relations (though
less so this year), works against the resolution. Finally, the House
leadership reluctantly shelves the whole thing and the curtain falls.
Before staging this year's performance, however, Congress should
note that hitherto frozen relations between Armenia and Turkey are
now showing signs of melting, and that this may be the first step
toward reconciling the Turkish and Armenian peoples. In September,
Turkish President Abdullah Gul attended a Turkey-Armenia football match
in Yerevan at the invitation of Armenian President Serzh Sargsyan,
who recently met with Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan in
Davos. The two foreign ministers, Turkey's Ali Babacan and Armenia's
Eduard Nalbandian have also been meeting. Both have made optimistic
noises.
Progress has been possible because the Armenians have focused on the
concrete issue of opening the Armenian-Turkish border-a vital matter
to them since none of their other neighbors (Azerbaijan, Georgia and
Iran) can offer a viable trade route to the West. Both sides have
wisely avoided the genocide dispute, surely recognizing it will have
to be dealt with eventually but that developing economic ties will
make it easier to do so.
Lingering in the background, however, is the Armenian diaspora's
passionate insistence that there was a genocide-and its mirror
image in the fury of the Turkish people denying it. Right or wrong
is not the point. No Turkish government could contemplate opening
the Armenian border with this issue front and center, and Congress
should re cognize that a genocide resolution would put it there.
In all probability, Turkey and Armenia can only resolve the genocide
dispute if they recognize that "was it a genocide?" may be the ultimate
question, but it is not the most important one today. To those aiming
for reconciliation, two questions outrank it: what common facts can
Turks and Armenians be brought to accept, and is the common ground
sufficient for both sides to start binding up the wounds? To this
end, Erdogan's proposal to establish a joint historical commission
should be pursued. Though Armenia has rejected the idea so far-largely
because it is winning its argument on the world stage-the government
has softened its stance recently. If the aim is reconciliation,
persuading the Turks to abandon the blanket denial they are taught
as schoolchildren is what counts.
Progress is not as implausible as it sounds. In the early days of the
Republic, Kemal Ataturk, who was not personally implicated, described
the Armenian massacres as "shameful acts." No ex-Ottoman officials
were investigated, however, as Turkey needed the newly minted heroes
of its War of Independence to have no stain on their characters. Today,
Erdogan will accept an investigation. In return, Armenia must accept a
reciprocal investigation into the Ottoman Armenians, who fought with
the sultan's Russian enemy, and their responsibility for massacres
of Turks and Kurds.
Weaving together these two violently oppo sed historical perspectives
will take time and patience. As important as the final answer, however,
is the development of empathy across the divide.
Congress can help keep the path to reconciliation open if it is
willing to deny the Armenian-American lobby the instant gratification
of a genocide resolution. Surely doing so would be far better than
repeating the exercises of the last 25 years over and over again until
a resolution finally passes and all the House's leverage over Turkey
evaporates, along with most of the good will in the Turkish-American
alliance, and maybe even the alliance itself. For its part, the
Armenian diaspora might even support reconciliation if only as its
second choice.
Finally, good relations between Turkey and Armenia would further
U.S. objectives in the Caucasus. The proposed hydrocarbon corridor
through the Caucasus from Central Asia looks much more secure in the
context of Turkish-Armenian friendship, and it might give Armenia
the confidence to break with the status quo in the longstanding
Nagorno-Karabakh dispute with neighboring Azerbaijan. Congress
and others should recognize that this year holds real promise for
the beginning of reconciliation between the Turkish and Armenian
peoples. If nothing comes of it, Congress can always return to
a resolution'.