onjig Posted April 27, 2021 Report Share Posted April 27, 2021 (edited) Park Asdoudozoh ``` Thank God ,,,,,, at Last ``` Edited April 27, 2021 by onjig 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Yervant1 Posted April 28, 2021 Author Report Share Posted April 28, 2021 The Hindu, IndiaApril 28 2021 Editorial: True name: On Armenian genocideAPRIL 28, 2021 00:15 IST Turkey should not live in denial of the atrocities committed against Armenians U.S. President Joe Biden has fulfilled a long-pending American promise by recognising the mass killings of Armenians by the Ottoman Turks in 1915-16 as “an act of genocide”, but the move has clearly infuriated Turkey, a NATO ally. In 2019, both Houses of the U.S. Congress passed resolutions calling the slaughter by its true name, but former President Donald Trump, like his predecessors, stopped short of a formal recognition of the genocide, mainly because of Turkish opposition. Ankara has challenged the “scholarly and legal” basis of Mr. Biden’s announcement and warned that it will “open a deep wound”. Up to 1.5 million Armenians were estimated to have been killed during the course of the First World War by the Ottoman Turks. When the Ottoman Empire suffered a humiliating defeat in the Caucasus in 1915 at the hands of the Russians, the Turks blamed the Armenians living on the fringes of the crumbling empire for the setback. Accusing them of treachery, the Ottoman government unleashed militias on Armenian villages. Armenian soldiers, public intellectuals and writers were executed and hundreds of thousands of Armenians, including children, were forcibly moved from their houses in eastern Anatolia (modern-day Turkey) to the Syrian desert. Many died during this exodus and many others, after reaching the concentration camps in the deserts. Turkey has acknowledged that atrocities were committed against Armenians, but is opposed to calling it a genocide, which it considers as an attempt to insult the Turks.Mr. Biden’s move comes at a time when the relationship between the U.S. and Turkey has been in steady decline. In 2016, Ankara accused the U.S.-based Turkish Islamic preacher Fethullah Gülen of being the mastermind of a failed coup, and asked the U.S. government to extradite him, a demand Washington paid no attention to. Turkey’s decision to buy the S-400 missile defence system from Russia, despite strong opposition from the U.S., prompted American leaders to oust Turkey from the F-35 fighter jet training programme and impose sanctions on their ally. When Mr. Biden assumed office, Turkish President Reccep Tayyip Erdogan had sent feelers for a reset, saying Turkey needed help from the West to resolve the Syrian crisis. But Mr. Biden’s move on the Armenian killings appears to have widened the cracks. For Turkey, this overreaction to anyone calling the Armenian massacre a genocide is not doing any good in foreign policy. Instead of being defensive about the crimes of the Ottoman empire, the modern Turkish republic should demonstrate the moral courage to disown the atrocities. It shouldn’t allow the past to ruin its present interests. https://www.thehindu.com/opinion/editorial/true-name-the-hindu-editorial-on-armenian-genocide/article34424836.ece Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Yervant1 Posted April 29, 2021 Author Report Share Posted April 29, 2021 PressWireApril 28 2021 TGTE Celebrates US Recognition of the Armenian Genocide in 1915-16News Provided ByTransnational Government of Tamil Eelam, TGTEApril 28, 2021, 14:38 GMTShare This Article NEW YORK, USA, April 28, 2021 /EINPresswire.com/ -- The Transnational Government of Tamil Eelam (TGTE) congratulates the Biden Administration for recognizing the Armenian Genocide which took place from Spring 1915 to Autumn 1916. Approximately 1.5 million Armenians were physically annihilated through massacres, starvation, ill treatment and displacement. We, the Eelam Tamils stand in solidarity with the Armenians in their search for justice.The recognition of the Armenian genocide by the U.S. government is long overdue. The recognition is thanks to the resilient activism of the Armenian diaspora in the United States. We applaud the Biden Administration’s moral courage to put human rights at the center of their foreign policy even when there are adverse geopolitical consequences.The Ottoman Empire’s “rationale” that Armenians might side with Russia during the First World War does not vitiate the specific intent to wipe out the Armenians. The Ottoman Turk’s “justification” that their barbaric massacre was a “necessary measure” against Armenian separatism does not mitigate the cruelty and the barbarism of the crime of genocide.The primary purpose of the recognition of genocide is not to simply pass blame on evil actions, but to serve as a proactive measure. As President Biden noted, the remembering of the lives of the victims of genocide is to recommit ourselves to preventing such an atrocity from occurring ever again. The President emphasized that, “We do this not to cast blame but to ensure that what happened is never repeated”. Article 1 of the Genocide Convention mandates that State Parties have a duty to prevent genocide in time of peace or in time of war. The International Court of Justice (ICJ) in the Bosnian genocide case affirmed this legal obligation.Let’s try together to create a genocide-free world.ABOUT THE TRANSNATIONAL GOVERNMENT OF TAMIL EELAM (TGTE):The Transnational Government of Tamil Eelam (TGTE) is a democratically elected Government of over a million strong Tamils (from the island of Sri Lanka) living in several countries around the world.TGTE was formed after the mass killing of Tamils by the Sri Lankan Government in 2009.TGTE thrice held internationally supervised elections among Tamils around the world to elect 135 Members of Parliament. It has two chambers of Parliament: The House of Representatives and the Senate and also a Cabinet.TGTE is leading a campaign to realize the political aspirations of Tamils through peaceful, democratic, and diplomatic means and its Constitution mandates that it should realize its political objectives only through peaceful means. It’s based on the principles of nationhood, homeland and self-determination.TGTE seeks that the international community hold the perpetrators of war crimes, crimes against humanity, and genocide against the Tamil people to account. TGTE calls for a referendum to decide the political future of Tamils.The Prime Minister of TGTE is Mr. Visuvanathan Rudrakumaran, a New York based lawyer.Twitter: @TGTE_PMOEmail: pmo@tgte.orgWeb: www.tgte-us.orgTransnational Government of Tamil EelamTGTE+1 614-202-3377r.thave@tgte.orgVisit us on social media:https://www.einnews.com/pr_news/539672053/tgte-celebrates-us-recognition-of-the-armenian-genocide-in-1915-16 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Yervant1 Posted May 3, 2021 Author Report Share Posted May 3, 2021 The Greek ReporterApril 24 2021 The Unexpected Reference of Joe Biden to Constantinople ByTasos KokkinidisApril 24, 2021In recognizing the Armenia Genocide, US President Joe Biden referred to Constantinople, today’s Istanbul, in a move that raised eyebrows in Greece and beyond.The relevant section of the statement by Biden reads: “Beginning on April 24, 1915, with the arrest of Armenian intellectuals and community leaders in Constantinople by Ottoman authorities, one and a half million Armenians were deported, massacred, or marched to their deaths in a campaign of extermination.”Analysts point out that at the time, the city was still officially known as Constantinople.However, Biden could have found a way to rephrase, by including its modern name, or even to omit the reference altogether.Some believe that the reference to Constantinople was another intended jibe directed against Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.Others claim that it is the result of Biden’s enormous respect for Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew and the Orthodox Church whose spiritual center has been Constantinople for centuries.Because of its historical location as the capital of the former Eastern Roman (Byzantine) Empire and its role as the mother church of most modern Orthodox churches, Constantinople holds a special place of honor within Orthodoxy.It serves as the seat for the Ecumenical Patriarch, who enjoys the status of primus inter pares (first among equals) among the world’s Eastern Orthodox prelates and is regarded as the representative and spiritual leader of Orthodox Christians. Biden and ConstantinopleBiden has met Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew several times, including in America, Greece and Constantinople.US Vice-President Joe Biden and Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew in the Phanar in 2014. Photo courtesy of N. Manginas He has described the meetings as “one of the greatest honors of my life.”Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew, Biden has said, is the “most Christ-like figure I have ever met.“I’ve never met anyone like His All-Holiness. He radiates grace, conviction, and faith in every movement,” Biden had said before assuming office.The relationship between the two leaders should bode well for numerous concerns of the Ecumenical Patriarchate, reports say.In January, Bartholomew praised Biden for his actions regarding the lifting of a travel ban from some predominantly Muslim nations and the rejoining of the Paris Climate Agreement.In an official communique the Patriarch stated:“The Ecumenical Patriarchate expresses its delight over two highly symbolical executive orders of the new U.S. President.“The Ecumenical Patriarchate congratulates the new President of the United States, Joseph Biden, on assuming his duties, and expresses its delight regarding two highly symbolical executive orders signed immediately after his inauguration.”Biden sent a letter to Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew in response.In a handwritten postscript, Biden wrote to the Ecumenical Patriarch: “Stay well. We need your leadership.” https://greekreporter.com/2021/04/24/unexpected-reference-joe-biden-constantinople/ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Yervant1 Posted May 5, 2021 Author Report Share Posted May 5, 2021 Madison, WIMay 4 2021 Biden’s recognition of Armenian genocide is a victory for truth over a vicious lieJohn NicholsI have waited my entire life for an American president to speak a full measure of truth about the Armenian genocide.Then, as his still new presidency approached its 100th day, Joe Biden did.I’ve had my differences with Biden in the past, and I will surely have them in the future. But I will always remember that he put America on the right side of history when, on this year’s Armenian Genocide Remembrance Day, he used the word that his predecessors had eschewed. Successive presidents of the United States, Democrats and Republicans, have issued statements on April 24, recognizing the Meds Yeghern, the great calamity, as Armenians historically have referred to the horrific events of more than a century ago. But they resisted using the term jurist and legal scholar Raphael Lemkin coined to describe this crime against humanity: genocide. They did not want to offend an American ally, the Turkish government, which has a long history of denying the mass murder of Armenians — and of pressuring other governments to do the same. Biden ended the lie of omission. “Each year on this day,” he said, “we remember the lives of all those who died in the Ottoman-era Armenian genocide and recommit ourselves to preventing such an atrocity from ever again occurring.”It is necessary to amplify the language of truth about this genocide and others throughout history because the language of denial is so insidious.I learned that as a child. For me, there was never any question that the Armenian genocide was real, because I grew up with Armenians who had survived it — and who then made their way to a city of refuge in the middle of the United States.I was born in that city: Racine. For more than a century, Racine has been a place of entry for Armenian immigrants and a home to their children and grandchildren. They built churches, formed clubs and community groups, opened stores and coffee shops, and became CEOs and doctors and lawyers. Yet they never forgot where they came from, or why they had to come to the United States. I came of age in the Racine County Courthouse, where my father was an assistant district attorney and practiced law with a number of Armenian-Americans, including Vartak Gulbankian, who was born in the village of Talas, in what is now Turkey, on Sept. 17, 1913. She came to the U.S. at age 6 with her parents, who settled in Racine. A remarkable woman, she graduated from high school at 14. At 21 she graduated from the University of Wisconsin Law School as the only woman in the class of 1935. She went on to practice law for more than 50 years and was a proud member of the American Civil Liberties Union and other groups that placed an emphasis on civil rights and civil liberties.Gulbankian and her fellow immigrants taught us the true history of the Armenian genocide, which began on April 24, 1915, when hundreds of Armenian intellectuals and community leaders were murdered by the Turks. With that, according to the International Association of Genocide Scholars, the “Young Turk government of the Ottoman Empire began a systematic genocide of its Armenian citizens — an unarmed Christian minority population. More than a million Armenians were exterminated through direct killing, starvation, torture, and forced death marches.” Henry Morgenthau Jr., the US ambassador to the Ottoman Empire, said at the time, “The great massacres and persecutions of the past seem almost insignificant when compared to the sufferings of the Armenian race in 1915.”As a child, I learned to recognize the denial of the genocide as an assault on truth and memory that has extended more than a century. There was never any question in my mind that Colin Tatz, the founding director of the Australian Institute for Holocaust and Genocide Studies, was right when he observed, “The Turkish denial (of the Armenian genocide) is probably the foremost example of historical perversion. With a mix of academic sophistication and diplomatic thuggery … the Turks have put both memory and history into reverse gear.” Or that Stanley Cohen, the great professor of criminology at Hebrew University, was right when he explained, “This denial has been sustained by deliberate propaganda, lying and cover-ups, forging documents, suppression of archives, and bribing scholars.”The denial has been so rigid and rigorous that, when Pope Francis acknowledged the 100th anniversary of the genocide in 2015, The New York Times reported that the papal statement “caused a diplomatic uproar with Turkey.”Biden knew that the Turkish government would respond angrily to his use of the word “genocide,” and it has.But the president chose to break the silence. In doing so, he acknowledged a bitter truth.“While Armenian immigrants have enriched the United States in countless ways,” he said, “they have never forgotten the tragic history that brought so many of their ancestors to our shores.” I understand there are more truths that this president must speak. I am not naive about how much of our own history must be reexamined and set right. And I am abundantly aware of the fact that acknowledging the truth is not the same as achieving justice for Armenians — or for other peoples who have been the targets of genocide. On April 24, though, I knew that Joe Biden had done something that mattered, something righteous.I thought of Vartak Gulbankian when the president declared, “We honor their story. We see that pain. We affirm the history.”I imagined how much that ACLU lawyer from Racine who so valued civil rights and human rights would have appreciated a president who boldly declared that, “We honor the victims of the Meds Yeghern so that the horrors of what happened are never lost to history. And we remember so that we remain ever-vigilant against the corrosive influence of hate in all its forms.” John Nichols is associate editor of The Capital Times. jnichols@madison.com and @NicholsUprising. Share your opinion on this topic by sending a letter to the editor to tctvoice@madison.com. Include your full name, hometown and phone number. Your name and town will be published. The phone number is for verification purposes only. Please keep your letter to 250 words or less. John Nichols Associate Editor John Nichols has been with The Capital Times since 1993 and has become one of Wisconsin's best-known progressive voices. He is the author of seven books on politics and the media and he also writes about electoral politics and public policy for The Nation magazine. https://madison.com/ct/opinion/column/john_nichols/john-nichols-biden-s-recognition-of-armenian-genocide-is-a-victory-for-truth-over-a/article_a08e9494-1c9d-58d5-ac28-3c9a8cd5f903.html Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Yervant1 Posted May 18, 2021 Author Report Share Posted May 18, 2021 May 17 2021 Erdogan Calls On Biden To Reverse Armenian DeclarationCarolinaMay 17, 2021 On Saturday, April 24, Armenian Genocide Remembrance Day, U.S. President Joe Biden made a historic declaration that the 1915 massacres of Armenians in the Ottoman Empire were a genocide. In response, Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan urged Biden to reverse his statement as it is disturbing their bilateral relationship. The 1915 massacre resulted in the death of at least 664,000 to possibly 1.2 million Armenian Christians. This event is often considered the first genocide of the twentieth century as Armenians were killed individually, massacred, or died of ill-treatment and starvation. According to Armenian-Genocide, there are at least thirty countries that recognize the Armenian genocide including France, Germany, Venezuela, and now the U.S. Global resistance to recognizing the massacres of 1915 may be a result of Turkey’s military power. For the U.S. at least, Turkey’s influence as the second-biggest military power in NATO and its strategic location was too important to risk tensions with their ally, according to the BBC. Biden’s decision to risk tensions with Turkey likely stemmed from his campaign promise to formally acknowledge the atrocity as a genocide once elected. The Biden administration’s move to centre human rights in its international policy agenda is a crucial step in the right direction. The U.S has often remained complicit in human rights violations for the sake of maintaining economic relations and military alliances.Erdogan’s response to Biden’s human rights-centred policy agenda is unsurprising. Since the statement, Erdogan has stated that this “wrong step” would harm ties, telling the U.S. to “look in the mirror,” and that the country still wished to establish “good neighbourly” ties with Armenia. While Erdogan is not wrong in telling the U.S. to “look in the mirror” in regard to its indigenous people, his comments continue to distract from the reality of what happened to Armenians in 1915. He continued to remain staunch with his stance, doubling down that “The U.S. president has made baseless, unjust and untrue remarks about the sad events that took place in our geography over a century ago.” He then criticized the U.S. for having been unable to successfully mediate the conflict between Azerbaijan and Armenia in Nagorno-Karabakh, alleging that the U.S. stood by as massacres unfolded. As mentioned, it is just as crucial to demand that the U.S. address its own complicity in human rights violations, however, tensions between Turkey and Armenia will persist if its state actors continue to resist acknowledging the genocide. Erdogan has often claimed that the killings were not systematically orchestrated and that the death toll was exaggerated. His comments demonstrate a blatant disregard for the barbarity that occurred a little over a century ago. Erdogan’s combative responses to international recognition of the genocide are bound to increase new and existing tensions among nations. There will be no ability for Armenia and Turkey to move forward unless tangible effort is demonstrated by Turkey to provide redress for the violence committed against the Armenian people.Part of Turkey’s resistance to recognizing the 1915 events stems from the country’s belief that there is no “scholarly or legal basis” to declaring the massacres a genocide, according to its foreign ministry. To address this, Erdogan has called for Turkish and Armenian historians to form a commission to investigate the events. Personally, I see this as a redundant way to waste time and divert people’s attention. Many historians have already conducted studies on the event and declared it a genocide. One scholar, Raphael Lemkin, the Polish-Jewish attorney that created the term “genocide,” refers to both the Holocaust and the massacres of Armenians when describing his investigations. Turkish officials and some scholars, however, do argue that the killings were not systematic, barring it from being a genocide. The main concern with Erdogan’s investigation is that there will be no consensus due to the risk of personal bias and agendas. I do recognize that this is a contested matter and a sensitive subject, so perhaps unbiased countries can offer their own historians to assist in the research and act as mediators. Ultimately, there is no guarantee that Erdogan and the Turkish government will acknowledge the massacres as genocide regardless of the findings.In an ideal world, Turkey would commit to its moral obligation and confess to the crimes committed against Armenians during the Ottoman Empire. Turkey should also listen to the wishes of the Armenian people. Vera Yacoubian, director of the Armenian National Committee of the Middle East Office, says that Turkey has a “great historical legacy” it needs to return to Armenia, including “church endowments, monasteries, schools, [and] hospitals” after confiscating money, title deeds, jewellery, and savings that Armenian citizens have in European and Turkish banks. There are many ways to compensate for the atrocities committed through recognition and reparations. Turkey needs to begin with the most direct form of action, confessing and apologizing for the genocides, before seeking avenues to provide restitution. Turkey should work in collaboration with Armenian organizations to generate potential means of providing this, ideally including the suggestions made by Yacoubian. While there is no certainty these outcomes will come to be, at least under Erdogan, perhaps Biden’s declaration is a step in the right direction. If more countries join in recognizing the atrocity as genocide, then international pressures may escalate enough to warrant more direct action from Turkey. Hopefully, Armenians will be able to receive the recognition and reparations they need to heal from their painful history.Author Carolina Carolina is a senior at Cornell University studying English and Government. She is interested in human rights, particularly issues regarding gender-based violence and immigration. https://theowp.org/erdogan-calls-on-biden-to-reverse-armenian-declaration/?fbclid=IwAR2fGxfiTk-yLNt4v7rH4tYQOJskOEmzKxK0JCd0a1s0d41lDjjcpA0PaRY Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Yervant1 Posted May 22, 2021 Author Report Share Posted May 22, 2021 Responsible StatecraftMay 20 2021 Biden arms waiver is ‘slap in the face’ of Armenian-AmericansAzerbaijan is just one of many client governments whose war crimes the U.S. ignores to keep military assistance flowing.MAY 20, 2021Written byDaniel Larison The U.S. has a habit of ignoring its own laws when it comes to arming and supporting authoritarian regimes. The latest example of this came last month when the Biden administration waived Section 907 of the Freedom Support Act, which was created to block U.S. military assistance to Azerbaijan during and after the first Karabakh war. One administration after another has issued this waiver since it became available in 2002 in the name of counter-terrorism cooperation, but events in the last year have made the usual rubber-stamping of supplying weapons to the Aliyev regime much more controversial, and rightly so. Azerbaijan’s aggressive military campaign in Karabakh last year was exactly what the original cutoff in military assistance was intended to discourage, and the assault on Karabakh proved that Baku’s commitment to diplomacy was a lie. Issuing the waiver in the wake of the second Karabakh war is indefensible. Doing so shortly after recognizing the Armenian genocide is a slap in the face to the Armenian-American community, and it makes a mockery of the Biden administration’s pretensions to making human rights central to its foreign policy. Azerbaijan is just one of many client governments whose war crimes the U.S. has ignored in order to keep military assistance flowing. Enabling further aggression against the people of Karabakh and Armenia is a particularly obnoxious and shameful example of how our government’s partnerships with corrupt authoritarian states puts innocent lives in jeopardy. Within weeks of the administration’s decision, there were already reports of new incursions by Azerbaijan’s forces into Armenian territory. These incursions come on the heels of reports that as many as 19 Armenian prisoners held in captivity by Azerbaijan have been tortured and executed. Instead of holding Aliyev’s government accountable for these outrages and the many other war crimes committed during the war, the Biden administration acts as if nothing has happened and everything is business as usual.To issue the waiver, the Secretary of State had to certify that U.S. military assistance will not “undermine or hamper ongoing efforts to negotiate a peaceful settlement between Armenia and Azerbaijan or be used for offensive purposes against Armenia.” Blinken’s decision to make that certification was a terrible mistake. Letting Azerbaijan off the hook for its recent war crimes against Armenian civilians and prisoners is bound to hamper efforts at reaching a peaceful settlement, and it is likely to encourage Azerbaijan to launch another attack. Azerbaijan was the aggressor in last year’s war, and now they are being rewarded for that aggression. It is not hard to imagine that Aliyev could interpret this as tacit approval for starting another war in the future. At the very least, it sends the message to Aliyev and other authoritarian clients that the U.S. privileges supporting them over upholding the requirements of our own laws and international law.Rep. Adam Schiff, the chairman of the House Intelligence Committee, has criticized the Biden administration’s decision to issue the waiver: “We should not be providing military funding to a nation that habitually engages in human rights violations and violates the sovereignty of its neighbors.” Congress should demand that the Biden administration justify the decision to waive the restriction on military assistance. Specifically, members of Congress should insist that Secretary Blinken explain why he signed off on this when the government of Azerbaijan is putting its war crimes on display in its appalling Military Trophies Park, complete with “ghoulish displays of helmets and caricatured mannequins of Armenian soldiers.” The dehumanization of Armenians has become a major feature of Azerbaijan’s official ideology, and by supporting Azerbaijan’s government the U.S. is giving its stamp of approval to a regime that both denies the Armenian genocide and threatens to commit another one.Another condition for issuing the waiver requires that it is deemed necessary to support U.S. efforts to counter international terrorism. Blinken’s decision to issue the waiver doesn’t make much sense here, either, since it is well-documented that Azerbaijan was recruiting mercenaries from among Syrian jihadists to support its attack on Karabakh. Far from being a reliable partner in counter-terrorism, Azerbaijan has been recruiting terrorists so that it can commit acts of aggression against its neighbors. It is no accident that the amendment that created the waiver for Section 907 was passed just a few months after the September 11 attacks. Our government’s “war on terror” has spawned a host of destructive policies, and establishing a closer security relationship with the dictatorship in Azerbaijan in the name of combating terrorism was one of them.We need to consider carefully why the U.S. provides military assistance to Azerbaijan in the first place. Azerbaijan is not a treaty ally. The U.S. does not owe their government anything. The country has been an important route for logistical support for the war in Afghanistan, but now that U.S. involvement in the war is drawing to a close that will no longer be necessary. There might be extraordinary circumstances where the U.S. is forced to work with an abusive and corrupt dictatorship like Azerbaijan as a temporary expedient, but that isn’t the case here. The U.S. doesn’t benefit from this relationship enough to justify a long-term partnership with such an odious government. The U.S. has no compelling reason to continue providing military assistance to Azerbaijan. It is time for our government to follow the law and put an end to it.There are some hard-liners in Washington that were cheerleading for Azerbaijan during its aggressive war in Karabakh, and they are no doubt pleased with the Biden administration’s decision to ignore Azerbaijan’s many crimes. According to the hard-liners’ view, backing Azerbaijan is not only tolerable but necessary to counter Russian and Iranian influence in the region. This is a warped view that has nothing to do with U.S. interests, but this latest indulgence by the Biden administration will give the hard-liners’ position a boost in Washington. As a candidate, Joe Biden liked to call out the Trump administration and Donald Trump personally for his indulgence and flattery of dictators around the world. Biden gave everyone reason to expect that he would not simply cater to authoritarian regimes and do them favors once he was president. Since taking office, however, Biden has made a series of wrong decisions that have rewarded authoritarian clients and allowed some of Trump’s worst policies to remain intact. Presented with the opportunity to undo Trump’s decision to recognize Moroccan sovereignty over Western Sahara, Biden has demurred, and it now appears that no reversal of that decision will be forthcoming. Given the chance to block an unjustifiable $23 billion sale of advanced weapons to the United Arab Emirates, Biden has let it go ahead. Issuing the waiver for military assistance to Azerbaijan makes the same kind of mistake.If Biden and Blinken want to make good on their rhetoric about emphasizing the importance of human rights in their foreign policy, they should begin by cutting off all military assistance to Azerbaijan. U.S. and Turkish support for Azerbaijan have served to create a menace in the Caucasus. The least that the U.S. can do is to stop aiding that menace as it threatens the stability of the region. https://responsiblestatecraft.org/2021/05/20/biden-arms-waiver-is-slap-in-the-face-of-armenian-americans/ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Yervant1 Posted May 30, 2021 Author Report Share Posted May 30, 2021 May 29 2021 What Lies Beneath: President Biden’s Deceptive Acknowledgment of the Armenian Genocide by Guest Contributor President Biden’s April 24 statement acknowledging the Armenian Genocide (1915–1923+) carried out by Turkey was welcome but flawed. Indeed, “Turkey” appears nowhere in the document. Moreover, the State Department swiftly undermined Biden’s virtuous-sounding words. American acknowledgment of the Armenian Genocide isn’t even new. The U.S. House has passed several resolutions on the Genocide, and a nearly unanimous Congress did so in 2019. Presidents going back to Woodrow Wilson have described the Armenian ordeals with language such as: an effort to exterminate all Armenians; terrible massacres; mass killings; death marches; and an ancient [Armenian] homeland was erased. If these don’t describe genocide, the word is meaningless. In 1951, the State Department cited the Armenian “massacres [as a] crime of genocide” in a filing at the International Court of Justice. In 1981, President Reagan included “the genocide of Armenians” in a Holocaust proclamation. Genocide acknowledgments should not — like car insurance — lapse if not renewed annually. Will the Holocaust become a non-genocide next year if the White House happens to overlook it? Still, Biden’s statement is noteworthy. It could even reinvigorate several Armenian American lawsuits against Turkey. But his statement has problems. Biden tries to take the heat off today’s Republic of Turkey by blaming only “Ottoman-era … authorities” for the Genocide. After the Allies defeated Ottoman Turkey in WWI (1918), Ottoman General Mustafa Kemal’s (Ataturk) forces continued to massacre Armenians, Assyrians, and Greeks. Kemal also ordered that Armenia be “politically and physically eliminated.” When he established the Turkish Republic in 1923, Kemal appointed Ottoman genocidists and continued to persecute Christians. Thus, as President Erdogan himself has confirmed, his country is a “continuation” of Ottoman Turkey. Knowing this, the Turkish Republic has always tried to evade accountability for the Genocide. Disgracefully, though, Biden tries to assist Turkey in that regard by writing, “We do this not to cast blame” [on Turkey].” The president has no right to hand Turkey a “Get Out of Jail Free card.” Just two days later, American Ambassador to Armenia Lynne Tracy tried to help Turkey duck accountability. “The Armenian Genocide took place in 1915, the [uN] Genocide Convention did not come into force until 1951 … from the legal perspective the Convention is not being applied retroactively.” Tracy’s reasoning — disputed by experts — suggests that Jews should have received no restitution or reparations because the Holocaust (1933–1945) also occurred before 1951. Turkey’s genocidal threats against Armenians continue to this day, something the president’s declaration ignores. In 1993, Turkey was going to invade Armenia were the coup against Russian President Boris Yeltsin to succeed. President Erdogan has branded Armenians, Assyrians, and Greeks “Leftovers of the Sword.” It’s an obvious, existential threat against Christian populations who survived Turkey’s 20th century genocides. In 2020, Turkey, its Turkic ally Azerbaijan, and jihadist mercenaries successfully attacked Armenian-populated Artsakh/Nagorno-Karabagh and Armenia. Erdogan gleefully likened these attacks to Ottoman Turkey’s genocidal invasion (1918) of Armenia. “Today, may the souls of [General] Nuri *****, [Minister of War] Enver *****, and the brave soldiers of the Caucasus Islam Army, be happy.” An analogy would be Germany’s denying the Holocaust, threatening Israel, arming its foes, calling Jews “leftovers of the concentration camps,” and glorifying Nazi Germany. Azerbaijani President Aliyev simultaneously claimed huge chunks of Armenia, including its capital Yerevan. Turkey and Azerbaijan’s military assaults and threats are all reminiscent of the Genocide. Biden’s vow that America must “ensure that what happened [the Armenian Genocide] is never repeated,” therefore, rings hollow. Moreover, Section 907 of the Freedom Support Act conditionally prohibits U.S. aid to Azerbaijan if the latter supports terrorism or engages in aggression against Artsakh/Nagorno-Karabagh/Armenia. However, the White House just waived Section 907 despite Azerbaijan’s flagrant use of ISIS and other terrorists against Armenians. Let’s not be deceived by the Biden’s April 24 statement and the State Department’s unprincipled actions. David Boyajian writes about Caucasus issues. His work can be found at Armeniapedia. https://greekcitytimes.com/2021/05/29/pres-biden-armenian-genocide/ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Yervant1 Posted May 31, 2021 Author Report Share Posted May 31, 2021 Your Central ValleyMay 30 2021 Exclusive – Is U.S. taxpayer money aiding a modern day genocide against Armenia? Armenian Caucus chair says Biden admin. has ignored requests to restrict military aid to Azerbaijan by: Alexan BalekianPosted: May 30, 2021 / 07:00 AM PDT / Updated: May 28, 2021 / 05:42 PM PDT A week after President Biden became the first U.S. sitting president to formally recognize the Armenian genocide, his administration waived a restriction to extend military aid to Azerbaijan. In an exclusive interview with Valley congressman David Valadao on Sunday Morning Matters, the Armenian caucus co-chair says his bipartisan letter to Secretary of State Blinken has not received a response. Meantime, nearly 200 Armenian POWs have been reportedly tortured or killed by Azerbaijani forces. Valadao says $100 million in U.S. taxpayer money was sent to Azerbaijan by the Biden administration by issuing a waiver not to uphold section 907 of the Freedom Support Act. The Biden administration has failed to answer multiple bipartisan requests for $100 million in aid to help rebuild Artsakh after most of it was destroyed in a bloody war back in September of 2020. https://www.yourcentralvalley.com/news/top-stories/exclusive-is-u-s-taxpayer-money-aiding-a-modern-day-genocide-against-armenia-armenian-caucus-chair-says-biden-admin-has-ignored-requests-to-restrict-military-aid-to-azerbaijan/ 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Yervant1 Posted June 18, 2021 Author Report Share Posted June 18, 2021 Thomas de Waal does what he does well, put doubt about the Armenian Genocide! Agos - Armenian Weekly Published in TurkeyJune 15 2021 Carnegie Europe and Thomas de Waal under critique 06.15.2021NEWS A group of academics and human rights lawyers penned a public response to the think tank Carnegie Europe after the publication of an article by the British journalist and writer Thomas de Waal on 30 April 2021 entitled “What Next After the US Recognition of the Armenian Genocide?”The text undersigned by fourteen scholars including Henry Theriault, Bedross Der Matossian, Elyse Semerdjian, and Marc A. Mamigonian, argues that de Waal's article, with its "inaccuracies and minimizations have (...) contributed to denial of the Armenian Genocide":CARNEGIE FATIGUEJune 14, 2021Think-Tank Tribalism, Historical Revisionism, and Immunity to CriticismThink tanks impact human lives by shaping public opinion and influencing policy. When think tanks publish work that distorts facts and neglects to name the beneficiaries of violence and dispossession, however, they abuse their power and undermine efforts that advocate for truth and human life. Think tanks should be held accountable for disseminating falsehoods that have real-world ramifications.It is in this spirit of accountability that we, a group of academics and practitioners, initially contacted the influential think tank Carnegie Europe after the publication of a problematic article by Thomas de Waal on 30 April 2021 entitled “What Next After the US Recognition of the Armenian Genocide?”On 18 May 2021, some of the signatories of this letter sent a protest letter requesting a retraction or a published response from our group of signatories to Thomas de Waal’s article. While de Waal’s article had already been corrected by Carnegie Europe three times for its inaccuracies, we pointed out that it still contained falsehoods and a minimization of the intentional, centrally planned, and organized genocide of Armenians, Assyrians, and Greeks. We affirmed that these inaccuracies and minimizations have, in essence, contributed to denial of the Armenian Genocide, and could be used to do so in the future. This is not an abstract intellectual debate. Think tanks that cannot admit mistakes perpetuate the oppression of the very people who are the subjects of their articles. Currently, Azerbaijan is engaging in ethnic cleansing, the destruction of millennia-old monuments, a gradual invasion of Armenia, and the torture and execution of illegally held POWs. At a time when denialists, propagandists, and governments are waging a literal war, think tank pundits who gloss over and distort facts are complicit in the enactment of real violence. Think-Tank TribalismCarnegie Europe’s Director, Dr. Rosa Balfour, responded to our cordial, well-reasoned, and research-backed letter by defending the institution through trivializing our criticisms as "emotional.” She opened her letter by thanking us for "deciding to write to [her] politely," in effect ascribing incivility to our group before she even read our letter.In discounting our legitimate criticisms as “emotional” because of who we are—a group of largely Armenian scholars, lawyers, and journalists—Carnegie's response to our protest letter is emblematic of Western Orientalist bias. Orientalists objectify and deny indigenous peoples a role in their own portrayal, resulting in political and epistemic subjugation. The condescension of Balfour’s communication is characteristic of the lack of diversity among those in decision-making positions in such institutions in the West, unchecked biases, and an unwillingness among higher-level staff to acknowledge, let alone learn from, expertise outside of their in-group. What Balfour’s letter affirms is think-tank tribalism.In her response, Balfour asserted that de Waal writes with empathy––empathy that is perhaps best illustrated by his claim that genocide is a "badge of honor" in a retracted section of the article. This cynical phrasing implies that the descendants of genocide are using the murder and violent dispossession of their ancestors for political aims. This is a common genocide denialist propaganda point. Our letter clearly highlighted that de Waal’s piece had offended those whom it described. In asserting that de Waal’s article was “sensitive” and written with “empathy,” Balfour casts herself as the expert of our own experience. She insists on the empathetic character of her institution while simultaneously ignoring our legitimate objections. Our experience with Carnegie Europe suggests that some think tanks swiftly respond to challenges to their authority by reproducing power dynamics that affirm their privileged positions. A Pattern of Historical Revisionism and DenialismBalfour’s reference to empathy in her response was a dodge to avoid the substance of our scholarly critiques regarding the inaccuracy of the claims de Waal presented and the methodology he followed in asserting them. De Waal’s response to our letter similarly evades our legitimate objections by doubling down on his flawed methodology while reasserting his authority to make errors of argumentation in chronology, historiography, and context.De Waal confirms that he chooses chronologies and sources only when they suit him. According to him, the valid dates of the Armenian Genocide are not 1915-1923 as most scholars assert, but rather 1915-1916 (although in his response he cites Ronald Suny to claim the dates of 1915-1917; where the missing year went, he does not say). The timeframe de Waal chose for overall losses in the Ottoman Empire—in which he seeks to contextualize, and therefore dilute, the annihilation of the Armenians—is 1914-1922. Thus, de Waal selected the narrowest possible window for the Armenian Genocide (1915-1916) and the widest possible one for Ottoman population losses (1914–1922). Unmentioned by de Waal was that his number for losses includes influenza, the Turkish civil war, the forced removal of Greeks, and the Armenian Genocide. Most disingenuously, de Waal falsely claimed that these losses were deaths, while his source, the Schuman Centre, is clear that the number includes migration. His entire premise is deceitful. Further, the Schuman Centre is not a specialized research center for genocide nor for history. The Centre's focus is European policy issues—it is an inappropriate source for historical data. De Waal’s selective use of dates and disuse of evidence equivocates Armenian suffering.Not only does de Waal make errors of chronology and evidence, he also ignores the historiography of Armenian Genocide scholarship. When he calls for "more historical research" regarding the Armenian Genocide, de Waal is not only devaluing the substantial body of research done before, especially prior to the mid-2000s, he is failing to disclose that this is the official position of the denialist state of Turkey. Vaguely calling for "more research" serves to shift attention from what has been said on the record––another denialist position. Scholarship on the Armenian Genocide has reached a level of proof rare for any historical event—calls for more research are evasion.Elsewhere, de Waal ignores context. He cites the importance of "Armenian-Turkish dialogue" without acknowledging Turkey's well-known instrumentalization of the term or the reality of the intense anti-Armenian sentiment and legal penalties that preclude honest dialogue today. In addition to ignoring the fact that "dialogue" has resulted in imprisonment and death in Turkey, de Waal omits the extensive literature on dialogue between victim and perpetrator groups. Including this would be a responsible way to introduce the topic rather than implying a Turkish talking point: "Armenians will not talk to us."Most egregiously, de Waal asserts that Raphael Lemkin, the coiner of the term “genocide,” did not believe that recognition of and prosecution for genocide can be retroactive. To reveal the inaccuracy of his assertion, we need only to point to the fact that Lemkin built the Armenian Genocide into his very definition of the term genocide.De Waal reaches his conclusions and assessments through out-of-date or uncritically analyzed evidence, but when confronted with his mistakes, he does not admit any wrongdoing.Immunity to Criticism and Refusal of Accountability Why does this matter? There is a great deal more at stake than the pride of a marginalized group. Overworked journalists, editors, policymakers, and members of the general public do not have time to study complex issues in depth. These groups often turn to recognized experts at think tanks for accurate and substantive coverage to inform their opinions and actions. When otherwise credible entities such as Carnegie Europe use their authority to elevate inaccurate, harmful analyses and brush off valid critiques, these organizations become tools of oppression and violence and encourage public indifference and ignorance. Truth, clarity, and nuance are critical for those facing a resurgence of eliminationist mass violence and a global propaganda attack funded by oil money. Signatories:Henry Theriault, PhD, President of the International Association of Genocide Scholars and Co-Editor of Genocide Studies InternationalKarena Avedissian, Ph.D., Fellow, Royal Society of ArtsBedross Der Matossian, PhD, Hymen Rosenberg Associate Professor of Judaic Studiesand History, University of NebraskaElyse Semerdjian, Ph.D., Professor of History, Whitman CollegeMarc A. Mamigonian, Director of Academic Affairs, National Association for Armenian Studies and ResearchLisa Gulesserian, Ph.D., Preceptor on Armenian, Harvard UniversityHarout Ekmanian, Esq., LL.M., Harvard Law School Alison Tahmizian Meuse, Senior Fellow, Regional Studies CenterCarina Karapetian Giorgi, Ph.D., Associate Professor of Sociology, Antelope Valley CollegePhilipp Lottholz, Ph.D., Postdoctoral Fellow, University of GiessenPolina Manolova, Ph.D., Research Associate, University of TuebingenJudith Saryan, Member of the Board, National Association for Armenian Studies and ResearchMark Youngman, Ph.D. Lecturer, University of PortsmouthHourig Attarian, Ph.D., Associate Professor, American University of ArmeniaLaurent Leylekian, General Secretary of the France-Artsakh Friendship Circle http://www.agos.com.tr/en/article/25781/carnegie-europe-and-thomas-de-waal-under-critique?s=03 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Yervant1 Posted June 28, 2022 Author Report Share Posted June 28, 2022 June 25 2022 Reality undermines Biden's virtue-signaling on genocide JUNE 25, 2022 06:00 AM BY MICHAEL RUBINJust two months ago, President Joe Biden commemorated the Armenian Genocide with a pledge "to remain vigilant against the corrosive influence of hate in all its forms." He added, "We recommit ourselves to speaking out and stopping atrocities that leave lasting scars on the world."Unfortunately, the president's words were empty.Azerbaijan unabashedly promises to finish the job against Armenia as the U.S. ambassador signals to the Azeri government that it should not worry about cuts to military aid. Biden threw a generation of Afghanistan’s women to the Taliban wolves. John Kerry, who plays an outsize role in Biden’s administration as climate envoy, has dismissed prioritizing action against China’s wholesale eradication of the Uyghur people if it means obstructing climate cooperation. "Life is always full of tough choices in the relationship between nations," Kerry said . For Kerry, "never again" only matters if it does subordinate to his agenda.Ethnic cleansing continues wholesale in Ethiopia. While Biden initially talked tough, his administration has done little to affect change, with perhaps 500,000 dead on the Biden team’s watch solely because of their Tigrayan ethnicity. They were slain by a Nobel laureate . Biden might plead helplessness in Ethiopia, but the same cannot be said for Nigeria, where the State Department took Nigeria off the religious freedom watch list in order to ensure greater comity when Secretary of State Antony Blinken visited the country. Nigerian President Muhammadu Buhari interpreted the move as a green light to accelerate anti-Christian pogroms .Nor was Nigeria the only country in which the Biden administration green-lighted genocide. A decade ago, Turkey demanded many Kurds relocate to Syria as part of a peace process. Today, Turkey cites their presence as a reason to attack. As war looms, Biden endorsed the sale of F-16 jets to Turkey, the main weapon with which the Turkish state kills Kurds. After hearing the White House's position, Turkey no longer believes the warnings against further encroachment into Syria. As for the Kurds now living in Syria? They have no place else to go. The ethnic cleansing that occurred under the Trump administration now appears a dry run for something far more sinister: Turkey appears intent on forcing the Kurds into the desert to die, just as they did the Armenians more than a century ago.Neglect also matters.Just as Biden bashed Saudi Arabia before reality forced an about-face, so too has his administration never missed an opportunity to trash Rwanda, perhaps the most successful country in Africa’s Great Lakes region. Rwanda is not only a symbol of rebirth from genocide, but it is also the world’s primary example of triumph over dysfunctional corruption. In recent weeks, though, the Biden team has subordinated Rwanda’s counterterrorism fight to Hollywood myth-making . For Rwanda, the crisis is real as the United Nations never disarmed the Genocidaires who escaped to refugee camps in the Congo. Now, those same forces are on the rampage in Congo’s South Kivu region, in a situation eerily reminiscent of the 1994 anti-Tutsi genocide across the border.Because the electorate saw Biden as less noxious than former President Donald Trump and any alternative among the progressive Left in the primaries, he found himself as the leader of the free world.What a betrayal it has been, however, to see Biden embrace the trappings of office but not its spirit and to engage in rhetoric but not deal with reality. It is the perfect storm for those from Ankara to Addis Ababa and from Beijing to Baku who would normalize genocide in the face of American weakness.Michael Rubin ( @mrubin1971 ) is a contributor to the Washington Examiner's Beltway Confidential. He is a senior fellow at the American Enterprise Institute.https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/restoring-america/courage-strength-optimism/reality-undermines-bidens-virtue-signaling-on-genocide Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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