As known, Murat Mercan, the Chairman of the Foreign Affairs Commission of the Turkish Grand National Assembly and members of the commission met with US Ambassador James Jeffrey to Ankara on February 16, 2010. In this meeting which lasted for 1,5 hours and in which the Ambassador spoke in Turkish, the main subject of discussion was the voting scheduled on March 4, 2010 of the "genocide" draft resolution which foresees the recognition of the 1915 events as "genocide" in the Committee on Foreign Affairs of the US House of Representatives.
In the meeting, Ambassador Jeffrey's statement that "As President Obama explained to Prime Minister Erdoğan on December 7, the only way out is to develop normal relations with Armenia and to ratify the protocols signed with them", has implied that if Turkey does not ratify the protocols signed with Armenia, then the "genocide" draft resolution will be adopted by the US House of Representatives.
In return, deputy of MHP Deniz Bölükbaşı's statement that "the Government must either retreat by saying that the protocols are void or must instantly put the protocols up for voting and reject them" has created discussions within the Foreign Affairs Commission.
What might be the results of the "genocide" draft resolution once again being brought on the agenda?
The announcement that the "genocide" draft resolution will again be reviewed by the Committee on Foreign Affairs of the US House of Representatives when April 24 is nearing by is not a coincidence. Just as almost every year, Armenian propaganda and the initiatives of the Armenian lobby have gained momentum again prior to April 24 and the pressure upon the US President over the speech he will deliver on April 24 has increased. However, the difference now compared to the previous years is that the aim of the draft resolution being considered again by the Foreign Affairs Commission is to corner Turkey into ratifying the protocols. Armenia and the US have a false conviction that under such a pressure, Turkey will be forced to ratify the protocols. Experiences of previous years have shown that it must not be expected from Turkey to submit to such pressures and change their stance.
If the draft resolution is adopted in the House of Representatives, it is clear that Turkey-US relations will be damaged. This will also push Turkey-Armenia relations which have already reached a deadlock to enter into an irreversible path and will harm the normalization process. Rejection of the protocols by Turkey can even be possible. This situation could harm Turkey, but will also harm the US and hinder the Turkey-Armenia relations. Moreover, it will also increase anti-Americanism which already exists in Turkey.
The US authorities are surely aware of these negative consequences. Therefore, insisting Turkey to ratify the protocols can be evaluated more as a gesture to satisfy Armenia and Armenians in the US. It can be concluded that the adoption of this draft resolution in the House of Representatives is not very likely.
Gizem SOKMENSUER/avim.org.tr
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