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AAA: Biden & Kerry Request Holdover For Ambassador Designate

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  • AAA: Biden & Kerry Request Holdover For Ambassador Designate

    Armenian Assembly of America
    1140 19th Street, NW, Suite 600
    Washington, DC 20036
    Phone: 202-393-3434
    Fax: 202-638-4904
    Email: [email protected]
    Web: www.armenianassembly.org

    PRESS RELEASE
    August 1, 2006
    CONTACT: Christine Kojoian
    E-mail: [email protected]

    BIDEN & KERRY REQUEST HOLDOVER FOR AMBASSADOR DESIGNATE

    Senate Vote on Hoagland Delayed Until September

    Washington, DC - The nomination of Richard E. Hoagland as America's
    next Ambassador to Armenia was held over by the Senate Foreign
    Relations Committee today, following concerns expressed by Ranking
    Member Joseph Biden (D-DE) and Senator John Kerry (D-MA) to delay
    consideration until the Committee's next business meeting.

    The lawmakers communicated their concerns to Committee Chairman
    Senator Richard G. Lugar (R-IN), who announced the holdover. Biden
    told Committee Members that "more than one colleague had approached
    [him]," suggesting that voting be delayed until the next meeting.
    Biden also said that although he does not expect the Administration to
    change its position on this issue, he hopes they will find a way to
    acknowledge the Armenian Genocide. Senator George Allen (R-VA), who
    questioned Hoagland during his confirmation hearing in June, added
    that "there was a Genocide" and that "Ambassador [John] Evans had to
    resign for stating the obvious."

    Hoagland is slated to replace Ambassador Evans who tendered his
    resignation after serving only two years of what is typically a
    three-year assignment. Last year, Evans was rebuked by the State
    Department after publicly affirming the Armenian Genocide in the
    course of his comments in the U.S. when he said "the Armenian Genocide
    was the first genocide of the twentieth century."

    In making his statements, Evans pointed to the International Center
    for Transitional Justice (ICTJ), which concluded that the events of
    1915 could be properly characterized as Genocide. President Bush
    himself has twice referenced the ICTJ study. Additionally, a letter
    from the State Department to Biden called it a "significant step
    toward reconciliation" (See attached letter).

    Members of Congress from both sides of the aisle have voiced their
    concerns to Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice over reports that
    Ambassador Evans' premature departure may be due to his public
    comments on the Armenian Genocide. To date, the State Department has
    provided no additional justification for Evans' departure other than
    to say that all Ambassadors serve at the pleasure of the President and
    that allegations that Turkey was involved in pressuring for his early
    departure are untrue. In addition to Senators Biden and Kerry, several
    other Committee Members, including Sens. Lincoln Chafee (R-RI), Paul
    Sarbanes (D-MD), George Allen (R-VA), Norm Coleman (R-MN), Russ
    Feingold (D-WI) and Barbara Boxer (D-CA), have also pressed Hoagland
    to clarify U.S. policy on the Armenian Genocide and to explain, how,
    if confirmed, he plans to speak about the Genocide.

    "The Assembly thanks Members of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee
    for their leadership on this issue and their steadfast support of
    reaffirming the Armenian Genocide," said Executive Director Bryan
    Ardouny. "If the United States wants to play a leading role in the
    region to help foster peace and democracy, then it should help Turkey
    come to terms with its past and also establish normal relations with
    its neighbor, Armenia. Speaking the truth should not be a punishable
    offense. The Administration should take the next logical step to its
    stated position, which provides a textbook definition of the Armenian
    Genocide without using the words and, once and for all, reaffirm this
    crime against humanity."

    The Committee has not set a date for voting on the nomination, which
    must take place before it goes to the full Senate for approval. In
    the meantime, Ambassador Evans remains in Yerevan.

    Hoagland has told Committee Members that if approved, he will
    faithfully represent the President's policy, which neither denies nor
    properly acknowledges the attempted annihilation of the Armenian
    people as Genocide. Hoagland, a career member of the Senior Foreign
    Service, currently serves as United States Ambassador to the Republic
    of Tajikistan. Prior to this, he served as Director of the Office of
    Caucasus and Central Asian Affairs at the Department of State.
    Earlier in his career, he served as Director of the Office of Public
    Diplomacy in the Bureau of South Asian Affairs.

    Born in Fort Wayne, Indiana, Ambassador Hoagland completed his
    graduate degrees at the University of Virginia and earned a
    certificate in French from the University of Grenoble, France. Before
    joining the Foreign Service in 1985, Ambassador Hoagland taught
    English as a foreign language in the then-Zaire (1974-1976) and
    African literature at the University of Virginia's Carter-Woodson
    Institute of African and Afro-American Studies.

    The Armenian Assembly of America is the largest Washington-based
    nationwide organization promoting public understanding and awareness
    of Armenian issues. It is a 501 (c) (3) tax-exempt membership
    organization.

    ###

    NR#2006-072

    Editor 's Note: Attached is the full text of the State Department's
    letter to Senator Biden.


    United States Department of State Washington, D.C. 20520

    June 28, 2006

    Dear Senator Biden:

    Thank you for your letter of June 23 concerning Ambassador John Evans.

    Ambassador Evans recently tendered his resignation as Ambassador to
    the Republic of Armenia, but currently remains in charge of our
    Embassy in Yerevan. We continue to work closely with him and his
    capable team. Please be assured that allegations that the U.S. is
    removing Ambassador Evans under pressure from the Government of Turkey
    are simply untrue. The Government of Turkey has not approached the
    Administration on this issue, and the United States and Turkey engaged
    in no diplomatic exchanges related to this matter.

    All U.S. Ambassadors, both career and non-career, serve at the
    pleasure of the President and as advocates of the President's
    policies. President Bush has expressed his policy regarding the tragic
    events of 1915 each year of his Presidency with his personal statement
    on Armenian Remembrance Day, April 24. In those statements, the
    President has called on all concerned parties to engage in thoughtful
    introspection on the forced exile and mass killing of as many as 1.5
    million Armenians by Ottoman troops. We share the profound sorrow of
    Armenian communities around the world regarding these horrific
    events. We believe this tragedy is of such enormous human significance
    that its characterization should be determined through heartfelt
    dialogue, not through diplomatic or political proclamations.

    We are encouraging all concerned parties to advance such dialogue. One
    such effort produced the analysis of the International Center for
    Transitional Justice (ICTJ). This study of the legal character of the
    horrors of 1915 marked a significant step toward reconciliation and
    restoration of the spirit of tolerance and cultural richness that has
    connected the people of the Caucasus and Anatolia for centuries.

    Please let us know if we can be of assistance on this or any other
    matter.

    Sincerely,

    Jeffrey T. Bergner
    Assistant Secretary
    Legislative Affairs
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