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Turkish Envoy To Return To US After 'Genocide' Row

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  • Turkish Envoy To Return To US After 'Genocide' Row

    TURKISH ENVOY TO RETURN TO US AFTER 'GENOCIDE' ROW

    Global Times
    April 2 2010
    China

    Turkey's ambassador to the United States is set to return to his
    post after being recalled fol-lowing a US House panel vote branding
    the World War I massacres of Armenians as genocide, a diplomat said
    Thursday.

    "A decision has been made in principle for his return," the Turkish
    diplomat told AFP on condition of anonymity.

    Ankara recalled Ambassador Namik Tan on March 4 after the House
    of Representatives' Foreign Affairs Committee adopted a resolution
    branding the 1915-17 massacres of Armenians under the Ottoman Empire
    as genocide.

    The envoy is expected to return to Washington before April 12, when
    Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan will "very probably" go to the
    US capital for a nuclear security summit, the diplomat said.

    Erdogan said later he would announce Friday whether he would attend
    the summit.

    "If I decide to go, I will send the ambassador back immediately,"
    he said.

    Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu spoke of "positive developments" in
    ties between the two NATO allies, highlighting a telephone conversation
    with US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton on Sunday.

    "There have been positive developments in the context of the reasons
    that required the return of our ambassador since the latest telephone
    call," Davutoglu told reporters.

    "There have been increasing messages easing our concerns and meeting
    our expectations ... and (showing) that the strategic dimension of
    Turkish-US relations is being understood," he said.

    Clinton had stressed that Washington "places importance" on Erdogan
    attending the nuclear security summit, he added.

    Davutoglu told Clinton that Washington should stop the bill from
    advancing to a vote at the full House.

    Blocking the resolution, he said, will be "of critical importance
    to eliminate the negative impact it has had" on Turkish-US ties and
    fledgling peace efforts with Armenia.

    The non-binding resolution calls on President Barack Obama to ensure
    that US foreign policy reflects an understanding of the "genocide"
    and to label the killings of Armenians as such in his annual statement
    on the issue.

    Clinton has urged the committee not to hold the vote for fear it
    might harm ties with a prominent Muslim ally and Turkish-Armenian
    reconciliation.

    She said after its approval that "we do not believe the full Congress
    will or should act on that resolution."

    Armenians say up to 1.5 million of their kin perished in orchestrated
    killings and deportations under the Ottoman Empire during World War I.

    http://world.globaltimes.cn/europe/2010-04/518 506.html
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