THE WALL STREET JOURNAL: A U.S. congressional committee approved a resolution condemning the 1915 slaughter of Armenians in the Ottoman Empire as genocide, rejecting a last-minute Obama administration effort to derail it and putting a chill on relations with Turkey.
The House panel's resolution, approved on a 23-22 vote, faces an uncertain future in Congress. But it nonetheless could damage U.S. relations with Turkey, a vital ally in the Middle East and Central Asia. Within minutes of the vote, Ankara said it was recalling its ambassador from Washington for consultations. Turkey took the same step in 2007, when the committee passed a similar resolution.
Thursday's vote also raised concerns for big U.S. defense firms including Lockheed Martin Corp., Boeing Co., Raytheon Co., United Technologies Corp. and Northrop Grumman Corp. Turkey is involved in several weapons projects with such companies, including helicopters, missiles and the F-35 fighter jet, and the companies are worried about losing business.
The vote was carried live on most Turkish television and radio news channels and was seen as a significant blow to Turkey's already limping attempt at rapprochement with Armenia.
Armenians say as many as 1.5 million ethnic Armenians were killed in 1915 during the dying days of the Ottoman Empire in what they consider a precursor to the Jewish holocaust. Many historians agree that the executions and mass deportations into deserts amounted to genocide. Turkey argues the death toll was lower, and many Turks contend the deaths were a result of civil war stirred up by World War I opponents such as Russia, and included atrocities on both sides. >>> John D. McKinnon and Marc Champion | Thursday, March 04, 2010
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US Labels Turkish Killing 'Genocide' >>> | Thursday, March 04, 2010
