Congressional Resolution On Armenian Genocide Introduced

Ignoring expected opposition from President George W. Bush, Democratic and Republican lawmakers have introduced a resolution urging the U.S. government to recognize as genocide the deaths of 1.5 million Armenians at the end of World War I. The resolution probably will anger Turkey as well as the president. Democratic Rep. Adam Schiff, a co-sponsor, acknowledged that the resolution might harm U.S.-Turkish relations in the short term. Nevertheless, he said, "I'm optimistic that the relationship will go on. We will move beyond this." Schiff and other lead sponsors who introduced the resolution in the House of Representatives say they have commitments from more than 150 other members who wanted to add their names as co-sponsors after the legislation's introduction. That would be a strong show of support in the 435-member body. The sponsors, who held a new conference Tuesday attended by two Armenian survivors of the episode, say that the move to Democratic control in Congress increases chances that the bill will reach the House floor for a vote. Similar resolutions have been introduced in the past but were kept from a vote by congressional leaders. "We feel very strongly that this year is the year we're going to get this passed," said another co-sponsor, Democratic Rep. Frank Pallone Jr., whose state, New Jersey, has a large Armenian-American community. The bill, which recalls the deaths of the 1.5 million Armenians almost a century ago, is likely to touch raw nerves in Turkey.