Armenian-Americans endorsed the Democratic candidate for US president, Barack Obama, on Friday, saying his presidency will be better than that of Republican John McCain in promoting Armenian-American interests.
Obama, running with vice presidential candidate Joe Biden, has pledged during his election campaign to recognize Armenian claims of genocide at the hands of the Ottoman Empire during World War I and vowed to back the passing of a resolution in the US Congress. In a statement posted on its Web site, the Armenian National Committee of America (ANCA), the biggest Armenian-American group, said Obama had been favored also because of his public criticism of the current Bush administration for firing the former US ambassador to Armenia, John Evans, for calling the World War I events "genocide."
Ironically, the ANCA endorsement puts Armenians and Turks in the same boat because of their support for Obama. Turkish officials are concerned over Obama's open backing for the Armenian claims, but most of the public prefers Obama over McCain and his vice presidential candidate, Sarah Palin. "Based on Senator Obama's strong record in office, his bold statements as a candidate and our judgment as to the types of policies he will pursue as president, we believe that an Obama-Biden administration would be far better positioned than a McCain-Palin one to reflect the views and values of the Armenian-American community," ANCA Chairman Ken Hachikian said.
More than one-and-a-half million Armenian-Americans constitute a powerful voting bloc, and ANCA says it has the power to mobilize Armenian-American voters through a network of over 50 local chapters and a diverse array of affiliates. ANCA said Obama had voiced his strong support for passage of the resolution in Congress and believed that, as president, he will recognize the alleged genocide and commit himself to promoting Armenia's security "by seeking an end to the Turkish and Azerbaijani blockades." Mc Cain, on the other hand, formally asked for the support of Armenian-American voters but failed to outline his stands on core Armenian-American issues, said ANCA. "Senator McCain has, throughout his tenure in the Congress, largely opposed or was passively indifferent to a broad array of Armenian-American issues. As recently as October of last year, Senator McCain publicly opposed congressional recognition of the Armenian Genocide. In 1999, he voted against restricting US aid to Azerbaijan over its blockades and other offensive force against Armenia and Nagorno-Karabakh. He voted against Senator Bob Dole's 'Armenian Genocide Resolution' in 1990. Governor Sarah Palin has no record on Armenian-American concerns," read the ANCA statement.
Turkey denies any claim of genocide, saying both Armenians and Muslims died in eastern Anatolia during civil strife caused by an Armenian revolt against the Ottoman Empire in collaboration with Russian forces than invading eastern Anatolia. President Abdullah G
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