ARMENIANS TRY TO BLOCK NOMINEE AMBASSADOR-PICK HOAGLAND MUST ADMIT GENOCIDE, CRITICS DEMAND.Byline: LISA The first personal computer to include integrated software and use a graphical interface. Modeled after the Xerox Star and introduced in 1983 by Apple, it was ahead of its time, but never caught on due to its $10,000 price and slow speed. FRIEDMAN Washington Bureau Armenian-Americans in Southern California Southern California, also colloquially known as SoCal, is the southern portion of the U.S. state of California. Centered on the cities of Los Angeles and San Diego, Southern California is home to nearly 24 million people and is the nation's second most populated region, and elsewhere are leaning on the U.S. Senate to block President George W. Bush's ambassadorial nominee to Armenia until he utters the word ``genocide.'' So far, no lawmaker has placed a hold on Ambassador-designate Richard Hoagland Richard Hoagland may refer to:
A member of the Democratic Party, Boxer was first elected to the U.S. and several others say they are frustrated by the refusal of Hoagland and the U.S. State A U.S. state is any one of the fifty subnational entities of the United States, although four states use the official title "commonwealth". The separate state governments and the federal government share sovereignty, in that an American is a citizen both of the federal entity and Department to recognize the killing of 1.5 million Armenians during the Ottoman Empire Ottoman Empire (ŏt`əmən), vast state founded in the late 13th cent. by Turkish tribes in Anatolia and ruled by the descendants of Osman I until its dissolution in 1918. as a genocide. The controversial issue cut short the tenure of John Evans John Evans may refer to:
``My concerns are about the absurdity of a policy that does not allow an ambassador to recognize the genocide of a people in the country in which he is serving,'' Sen. Norm Coleman, R-Minn., said Thursday. Coleman likened the situation to hypothetically having a U.S. ambassador to Israel who was unable to call the massacre of 6 million Jews during World War II the Holocaust. Elizabeth Chouldjian, spokeswoman for the Armenian National Committee of America The Armenian National Committee of America (ANCA) is an Armenian-American grassroots organization that actively advances the concerns of the Armenian American community on a broad range of issues. -- which this week formally requested that the Senate delay Hoagland's confirmation -- said the organization believes he cannot represent U.S. interests in Armenia. ``Sending a genocide denier de·ni·er 1 n. One that denies: a denier of harsh realities. denier Noun to Armenia is a disservice to the American people,'' Chouldjian said. ``How effective can a U.S. ambassador to Armenia be if they, in confirmation hearings, deny the genocide?'' Hoagland, in written responses to Senate lawmakers, denied being instructed not to us the word genocide. At the same time, he repeatedly sidestepped questions about precisely why the administration feels the mass deportations and killings should not qualify as genocide. ``This tragedy is of such enormous human significance that its historical assessment should be determined not on the basis of politics, but through heartfelt introspection among civic leaders, scholars, and the societies at large,'' Hoagland wrote to Boxer. The U.S. government, sensitive to offending Turkey -- a traditionally close and strategic NATO NATO: see North Atlantic Treaty Organization. NATO in full North Atlantic Treaty Organization International military alliance created to defend western Europe against a possible Soviet invasion. ally -- has steadfastly refused to refer explicitly to the issue as a genocide. Turkey, for its part, acknowledges that atrocities were committed against Armenians, but maintains there was no intention to eradicate a people -- and therefore no genocide. Turkish officials point out that Armenian militias teamed up with advancing Russian armies, killing thousands of Turks in the chaotic aftermath of World War I The fighting in World War I ended when an armistice took effect at 11:00 hours on November 11, 1918. In the aftermath of World War I the political, cultural, and social order of the world was drastically changed in many places, even outside the areas directly involved in the war. . They contend about 300,000 Armenians were killed. Omer Taspinar, director of the Turkey program at the Brookings Institution Brookings Institution, at Washington, D.C.; chartered 1927 as a consolidation of the Institute for Government Research (est. 1916), the Institute of Economics (est. 1922), and the Robert S. Brookings Graduate School of Economics and Government (est. 1924). in Washington, D.C., said the Hoagland controversy comes at a difficult time in U.S.-Turkish relations. Resentments, he noted, still linger in the U.S. over Turkey's refusal to allow America a northern front in the Iraq war and the Turkish government's recent decision to host Hamas leader Khalid Mishal. Meanwhile, Turkey has signaled it will send an army into northern Iraq to confront Kurdish terrorists, despite U.S. warnings that the country should not take unilateral action there. ``It is no longer so easy to talk about a strategic partnership between Turkey and the United States,'' Taspinar said. The problems, he added, have significantly eroded the rationale that the U.S. should not alienate Turkey with genocide resolutions because of its role as a key ally in the region. ``For the lawmakers, there is no reason why they should defend Turkey. Ankara has proven to be an unreliable partner in Iraq. There's quite an anger,'' he said. Meanwhile, Boxer and other lawmakers say Hoagland's nomination will be delayed. ``A lot of people have concerns, so nothing's happening on it,'' Boxer said. Added Chouldjian, ``At the very least, the State Department has an obligation to explain clearly what its policies are with respect to this issue.'' Regardless of when Hoagland gets to his post, Taspinar said the genocide dispute underlying the nomination could further erode an already rocky U.S.-Turkey friendship. ``Any kind of recognition of the genocide issue will poison Turkish- American relations, which have already gone to hell because of Iraq. The White House does not want that,'' he said. lisa.friedman(at)langnews.com (202) 662-8731 |
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