The US House of Representatives voted to recognize the mass killings of Armenians a hundred years ago as a genocide incident, a symbolic yet historic vote instantly denounced by Turkey.
The resolution passed by a vote of 405 to 11, in favor of a resolution asserting that it is US policy to commemorate as genocide the mass killing of 1.5 million Armenians by the Ottoman Empire during the years from 1915 to 1923. The Ottoman Empire used to be centered in present-day Turkey.
This vote marked the first time in 35 years such legislation was considered in the full House. It also underscored widespread frustration in Congress with the Turkish government, both from Democrats and President Donald Trump’s fellow Republicans.
After the vote, House lawmakers from both parties overwhelmingly backed legislation calling on Donald Trump to impose sanctions on Turkey over its offensive in northern Syria, another action that will probably inflame relations with NATO ally Turkey.
The fate of both measures in the Senate remains unclear, with no vote scheduled on similar legislation.
Turkey accepted that many Armenians living in the Ottoman Empire were killed in clashes with Ottoman forces during World War One, but contested the figures and denies that the killings were systematically orchestrated and constitute a genocide. In a statement, the Turkish foreign minister, Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu, condemned the move, which he called “a meaningless political step” and an “attempt to rewrite history”.
Ankara, the Turkish capital, views foreign involvement in the issue as a threat to its sovereignty.
For several decades, measures that recognize the Armenian genocide have stalled in Congress, stymied by worries that it could complicate relations with Turkey.
Foreign Policy
Wall Street Journal
Historians, governments, as well as the Armenian people think that they were; several scholars question this, though.
Yet, US lawmakers have been fuming about Turkey in recent months, due to its purchase of a Russian missile defense system in defiance of US sanctions and, more recently, its incursion into northern Syria to fight Kurdish forces after Donald Trump abruptly announced that he was withdrawing US troops from the area.
Wikipedia
The Independent
NY Times
WOW LOOK AT THESE INCREDIBLE NUMBERS!!! THE U.S. JUST RECOGNIZED THE ARMENIAN GENOCIDE!!!! 🇦🇲🙏🏼✨ pic.twitter.com/rEwPbZp5m0
— Kim Kardashian West (@KimKardashian) October 30, 2019
I salute the US Congress historic vote recognizing the Armenian Genocide. Resolution 296 is a bold step towards serving truth and historical #justice that also offers comfort to millions of descendants of the Armenian Genocide survivors.
— Nikol Pashinyan (@NikolPashinyan) October 29, 2019
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