Bush Presses Congress To Block Armenian Genocide Bill

A senior U.S. State Department issued a forceful appeal Thursday for Congress to reject a proposed resolution defining as genocide the mass killings of Armenians in the closing days of the Ottoman Empire. Assistant Secretary of State Daniel Fried said Turkish officials have informed the United States that approval of the resolution could lead to shutdown of the U.S. base at Incirlik or a restriction on U.S. overflight rights granted by Turkey. Fried said the United States also has been informed that the Turkish Parliament would respond with "extreme emotion" if the Armenian resolution were approved. He added that such a step would undercut voices in Turkey calling for a "truthful exploration of these events in pursuit of Turkey's reconciliation with its own past and with Armenia." Fried testified before a hearing of a House Foreign Affairs subcommittee on Europe. He highlighted what he said were growing calls in Turkey for changes to Article 301 of the Turkish Constitution, which criminalizes "insulting Turkishness." The resolution, Fried said, runs counter to the views of the 60,000-70,000 Turkish-Armenian community which, he added, has been warning that the measure would "raise popular emotions so dramatically as to threaten their personal security." He also said the U.S. fear is that "passage of any such resolution would close minds and harden hearts."