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Tapped, DC
Oct 13 2007
WHY THE ARMENIAN GENOCIDE RESOLUTION IS A BAD IDEA.
Some observers are wondering whether there is any reason to support
the Armenian Genocide Resolution. The answer is no. It's egregiously
foolish and needlessly provocative, and there is virtually nothing
the U.S. could do to irritate the Turks more.
I studied Middle East international politics in Istanbul as a college
student, and as a result I'm a great fan of Turkey and its people, so
perhaps I'm slightly biased. But Turkey is a tremendous ally, and,
more importantly, a model for how a Muslim society can facilitate a
functioning, successful democracy. Even as Islamophobics get the
vapors over a more religious party (AKP) taking power in Turkey, AKP
has reached out to the EU, greatly improved relations with the
Kurdish population, and reformed a political system that was
dominated for years by the corruption and economic failures of a
party of secular elites.
The Armenian genocide issue is extraordinarily sensitive in Turkey,
and Turkish leadership holds tightly to the claim that the deaths
were the result of legitimate battles rather than a coordinated
genocidal effort. That claim is questionable, to say the least, but
it's one in which the Turkish psyche is deeply invested. And it's not
like the proposed Congressional resolution was the result of a few
members reading about it and randomly deciding that it deserved
special attention nearly a hundred years later, but rather a
concerted lobbying effort by specific Armenian groups and backers.
Questionable identity politics, to say the least -- I mean, what on
Earth is this supposed to accomplish? There's no strategic goal
whatsoever. It's not that genocide isn't a terrible thing, it's a
question of costs and benefits in our overall policy. How would we
react, for example, if Turkey passed a resolution in its parliament
condemning the "U.S. genocide of Native Americans"?
Which isn't to say that the resolution is inaccurate, but it is very
selective rightness in the wrong time and place. Especially
considering the damage our Iraq project has done to Turkey -- Kurdish
terrorists are free to operate from Iraq's north, unmolested by U.S.
or Iraqi or (Iraqi) Kurdish forces, to the extent that Turkey is
likely to move in troops sometime in the next few months if something
isn't done. Turkey is (or at least was, and has the potential to be
again) pro-West, pro-U.S., and the best example of majority-Muslim
democratic governance, and to jam a stick in their most sensitive
spot of collective national consciousness is a terrible idea.
Of course, it's a complicated issue, and genocide is genocide, and
some people whom I respect greatly disagree with me on this. Still,
from a geopolitical perspective, this is pretty foolish.
--Alex Rossmiller
http://www.prospect.org/csnc/blogs/t apped_archive?month=10&year07&base_name=wh y_the_armenian_genocide_reso
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress
Oct 13 2007
WHY THE ARMENIAN GENOCIDE RESOLUTION IS A BAD IDEA.
Some observers are wondering whether there is any reason to support
the Armenian Genocide Resolution. The answer is no. It's egregiously
foolish and needlessly provocative, and there is virtually nothing
the U.S. could do to irritate the Turks more.
I studied Middle East international politics in Istanbul as a college
student, and as a result I'm a great fan of Turkey and its people, so
perhaps I'm slightly biased. But Turkey is a tremendous ally, and,
more importantly, a model for how a Muslim society can facilitate a
functioning, successful democracy. Even as Islamophobics get the
vapors over a more religious party (AKP) taking power in Turkey, AKP
has reached out to the EU, greatly improved relations with the
Kurdish population, and reformed a political system that was
dominated for years by the corruption and economic failures of a
party of secular elites.
The Armenian genocide issue is extraordinarily sensitive in Turkey,
and Turkish leadership holds tightly to the claim that the deaths
were the result of legitimate battles rather than a coordinated
genocidal effort. That claim is questionable, to say the least, but
it's one in which the Turkish psyche is deeply invested. And it's not
like the proposed Congressional resolution was the result of a few
members reading about it and randomly deciding that it deserved
special attention nearly a hundred years later, but rather a
concerted lobbying effort by specific Armenian groups and backers.
Questionable identity politics, to say the least -- I mean, what on
Earth is this supposed to accomplish? There's no strategic goal
whatsoever. It's not that genocide isn't a terrible thing, it's a
question of costs and benefits in our overall policy. How would we
react, for example, if Turkey passed a resolution in its parliament
condemning the "U.S. genocide of Native Americans"?
Which isn't to say that the resolution is inaccurate, but it is very
selective rightness in the wrong time and place. Especially
considering the damage our Iraq project has done to Turkey -- Kurdish
terrorists are free to operate from Iraq's north, unmolested by U.S.
or Iraqi or (Iraqi) Kurdish forces, to the extent that Turkey is
likely to move in troops sometime in the next few months if something
isn't done. Turkey is (or at least was, and has the potential to be
again) pro-West, pro-U.S., and the best example of majority-Muslim
democratic governance, and to jam a stick in their most sensitive
spot of collective national consciousness is a terrible idea.
Of course, it's a complicated issue, and genocide is genocide, and
some people whom I respect greatly disagree with me on this. Still,
from a geopolitical perspective, this is pretty foolish.
--Alex Rossmiller
http://www.prospect.org/csnc/blogs/t apped_archive?month=10&year07&base_name=wh y_the_armenian_genocide_reso
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress