EXPERTS MULL IMPACT OF US MID-TERM POLLS ON RELATIONS WITH ARMENIA, TURKEY
BBC Monitoring from Public Television of Armenia & Azg (Armenia)
Nov 5 2010
The result of the US mid-term elections holds out good prospects
for the recognition of the "Armenian genocide" in the US Congress,
since 90 per cent of pro-Armenian members have been re-elected, the
state-owned Armenian Public TV quoted an Armenian American political
expert, Richard Giragosian, as saying in its 4 November report.
Giragosian was shown telling a news conference in Yerevan, "We will
see the Republicans, and many in Congress will be more pro-Armenian
than in the past. We will also see that anti-Turkish moods will grow."
The chances of passing draft resolution 252 on recognition of the
"Armenian genocide" have improved, because the Republicans, who won a
majority in the House of Representatives, want to use the resolution
to punish Turkey over problems in Turkish-Israeli relations and a
lot of formerly pro-Turkish Republicans now support the resolution,
the channel quoted Giragosian as saying.
"We will also see expressions of revenge on the part of Israel and the
Israeli lobby - this means that the resolution on the Armenian genocide
will be discussed much earlier than in April - as [currently] expected;
and Turkey will not be ready to defend itself from the resolution,"
Giragosian was shown saying. "If the vote on the genocide resolution
does not take place this year, it will definitely be introduced in
the new Congress, in January, and no problem will emerge at that time,
because the new Congress will be more pro-Armenian and back recognition
of the Armenian genocide."
Giragosian was also quoted as saying that the Republicans are in
general anti-Azerbaijani because they do not have links to US oil
companies and they are unhappy with the Azerbaijani leader Ilham
Aliyev for opposing the normalization of Armenian-Turkish ties.
Meanwhile the Armenian daily Azg reported on 4 November that Armenian
political experts are divided over the extent to which the election
will benefit Armenia and Karabakh.
In an article by M.Kh. titled "Impact of US elections on Armenian
reality", a senior member of the Armenian Revolutionary Federation -
Dashnaktsutyun, Kiro Manoyan, was quoted as saying that the House
of Representatives may review the current US Department of State ban
on aid to Karabakh and new opportunities may emerge for progress in
initiatives linked to Armenia, Karabakh and the "Armenian genocide".
However, the paper also noted the existence of pessimistic voices
among experts. "Other opinions are voiced as well, which express
the approach that changes in US policy on these issues [Armenia,
Karabakh] are not very much likely - irrespective of the balance
of forces in the Congress and the Senate - as the US foreign policy
agenda is based solely on the agenda of this country's foreign policy
strategy," it wrote.
From: A. Papazian
BBC Monitoring from Public Television of Armenia & Azg (Armenia)
Nov 5 2010
The result of the US mid-term elections holds out good prospects
for the recognition of the "Armenian genocide" in the US Congress,
since 90 per cent of pro-Armenian members have been re-elected, the
state-owned Armenian Public TV quoted an Armenian American political
expert, Richard Giragosian, as saying in its 4 November report.
Giragosian was shown telling a news conference in Yerevan, "We will
see the Republicans, and many in Congress will be more pro-Armenian
than in the past. We will also see that anti-Turkish moods will grow."
The chances of passing draft resolution 252 on recognition of the
"Armenian genocide" have improved, because the Republicans, who won a
majority in the House of Representatives, want to use the resolution
to punish Turkey over problems in Turkish-Israeli relations and a
lot of formerly pro-Turkish Republicans now support the resolution,
the channel quoted Giragosian as saying.
"We will also see expressions of revenge on the part of Israel and the
Israeli lobby - this means that the resolution on the Armenian genocide
will be discussed much earlier than in April - as [currently] expected;
and Turkey will not be ready to defend itself from the resolution,"
Giragosian was shown saying. "If the vote on the genocide resolution
does not take place this year, it will definitely be introduced in
the new Congress, in January, and no problem will emerge at that time,
because the new Congress will be more pro-Armenian and back recognition
of the Armenian genocide."
Giragosian was also quoted as saying that the Republicans are in
general anti-Azerbaijani because they do not have links to US oil
companies and they are unhappy with the Azerbaijani leader Ilham
Aliyev for opposing the normalization of Armenian-Turkish ties.
Meanwhile the Armenian daily Azg reported on 4 November that Armenian
political experts are divided over the extent to which the election
will benefit Armenia and Karabakh.
In an article by M.Kh. titled "Impact of US elections on Armenian
reality", a senior member of the Armenian Revolutionary Federation -
Dashnaktsutyun, Kiro Manoyan, was quoted as saying that the House
of Representatives may review the current US Department of State ban
on aid to Karabakh and new opportunities may emerge for progress in
initiatives linked to Armenia, Karabakh and the "Armenian genocide".
However, the paper also noted the existence of pessimistic voices
among experts. "Other opinions are voiced as well, which express
the approach that changes in US policy on these issues [Armenia,
Karabakh] are not very much likely - irrespective of the balance
of forces in the Congress and the Senate - as the US foreign policy
agenda is based solely on the agenda of this country's foreign policy
strategy," it wrote.
From: A. Papazian