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78 US Congress members sign letter urging Trump to press Erdogan on human rights

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Seventy-eight members of U.S. Congress have sent a letter pressing President Trump to prioritize democracy and human rights during Tuesday’s White House meeting with Turkish President Erdogan.

Citing the “continuing erosion of human rights and the dramatic decline of democratic values in Turkey,” a bipartisan group of U.S. Representatives is calling on President Trump to “be candid and consistent in our support of democratic values and respect for human rights.” The legislators specifically cited the Erdogan government’s “increased direct threats against political opposition groups and minority communities including ethnic Kurds.”

The bipartisan appeal closed with a request that President Trump “make support for Turkish democracy a priority, both in your meetings with President Erdogan next week and in U.S. policy toward Turkey thereafter.”

ANCA Executive Director Aram Hamparian said they welcome Congressional calls on President Trump to prioritize democracy and human rights in our relationship with the Turkish government of Recep Erdogan.

Trump Praises ‘Very Good’ Meeting With Russian Foreign Minister

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U.S. President Donald Trump (right) and Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov meet in the Oval Office for talks on May 10.

U.S. President Donald Trump (right) and Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov meet in the Oval Office for talks on May 10.

WASHINGTON — U.S. President Donald Trump said his talks with Russia’s foreign minister were “very good” and said both Washington and Moscow were working toward ending the six-year war in Syria.

Trump’s May 10 White House meeting with Sergei Lavrov was the highest-level meeting the U.S. president has had with a Russian official since taking office in January.

The talks were overshadowed, however, by Trump’s decision a day earlier to fire FBI Director James Comey, a surprise announcement that roiled Washington.

Comey was overseeing the criminal investigations into the ties between Trump associates and Russian officials.

In brief comments to reporters at the White House, Trump praised the outcome of his meeting with Lavrov.

“I think that we are going to do very well with respect to Syria. I think things are happening. They are really, really, really positive,” Trump said.

Trump made the comments alongside Henry Kissinger, the legendary diplomat who served in Richard Nixon’s presidency more than four decades ago. Kissinger has served as a back-channel intermediary to the Kremlin for many years under several administrations, Democratic and Republican.

WATCH: Lavrov Says Trump Seeks Pragmatic Solutions With Russia

In a statement released later, the White House said Trump urged Lavrov to “rein in” Syrian President Bashar al-Assad and Iran. Both are close allies of Russia.

Trump also discussed the issue of Ukraine, the White House said, and Trump “stressed Russia’s responsibility to fully implement the Minsk agreements,” which set out conditions for a cease-fire in eastern Ukraine.

Russia has backed insurgents in eastern Ukraine, sparking a war that has killed more than 9,900 people.

Lavrov, meanwhile, told reporters at the Russian Embassy that Trump wanted “mutually beneficial, businesslike, pragmatic” relations with Moscow.

Lavrov said the issue of sanctions — imposed by the international community on Moscow for its 2014 annexation of Ukraine’s Crimean Peninsula — was not raised during the meeting. And he brushed aside questions about Russia’s alleged interference in last year’s presidential campaign.

However, a State Department statement, issued after Lavrov’s meeting earlier in the day with U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson, said that Tillerson also “stressed the need for progress toward full implementation of the Minsk agreements” and told Lavrov that “sanctions on Russia will remain in place until Moscow reverses the actions that triggered them.”

Lavrov also said that Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin will meet for the first time in July in Hamburg, when the German city hosts a summit of leaders from the Group of 20 economic powers.

Lavrov was joined in the meeting by Russia’s ambassador to the United States, Sergei Kislyak, who has been at the center of speculation concerning Trump associates’ ties to Russian officials. Trump’s first national security adviser, Michael Flynn, was fired after he misled White House officials about his interactions with Kislyak and others.

Lavrov also discussed Syria and other issues with Tillerson, who said the meeting was a chance for the two to “continue our dialogue and our exchange of views” since his trip to Moscow last month. At the time, Tillerson said relations with Russia needed to be rebuilt.

Asked by reporters about the Comey firing, Lavrov reacted sarcastically, saying, “Was he fired? You’re kidding. You’re kidding.” Then he waved his hand dismissively and exited the room alongside Tillerson.

In Russia, Putin said he didn’t expect Comey’s firing to have any effect on relations with the United States.

“There will be no effect,” Putin told CBS News in a short interview after playing in a charity hockey game in the Russian Black Sea resort of Sochi. “Your question looks very funny for me. Don’t be angry with me. We have nothing to do with that.”

During last year’s election campaign, Trump called for better relations with Russia. Since taking office, however, many top cabinet officials have voiced a tougher stance that is closer to more conventional Republican approaches and to the policies of former President Barack Obama.

The administration has backed NATO efforts to counter Russia’s military buildup and aggressive actions in Europe, from the Baltics to Ukraine and Georgia.

Despite sharp differences, Syria is one area where Russia and Washington have worked to find common ground to jointly battle Islamic State militants and end the war there.

Last week, Russia, Iran, and Turkey agreed to the establishment of “de-escalation zones” in Syria, where Russia has given Assad’s government crucial military and diplomatic backing throughout the war.

The State Department has stressed that the United States is not a party to the agreement but hopes it “can contribute to a de-escalation of violence, end the suffering of the Syrian people, and set the stage for a political settlement of the conflict.”

U.S. Defense Secretary Jim Mattis said on May 8 that the United States would examine the plan “very, very carefully.”

With reporting by AP, CNN, AFP, The Hill, The New York Times, Reuters, and TASS

Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors slams Trump for not recognizing Armenian Genocide

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The Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors has urged the White House to recognize the Armenian genocide.

Supervisor Kathryn Barger recommended sending a letter to President Donald Trump, mynewsla.com reported.

She noted that Trump, like past presidents, stopped short of describing the 1915 events as “genocide”.

Supervisor Hilda Solis said officials should not be “intimidated by the threats that are made by the Turkish government,” which has long denied that a genocide occurred.

The board will also urge the county’s congressional delegates to support House Resolution 220, sponsored by Rep. Adam Schiff, D-Burbank, which would formally recognize the genocide.

Representative of the Armenian community Peter Darakjian, told the board there were no local survivors left to share the horror of the genocide, now that a 101-year-old woman had died.

“History seems to repeat itself if it goes unrecognized. Genocide seems to do the same,” Darakjian said. “Enough already, after 102 years.”

Los Angeles County is home to more than 200,000 Armenians.

Did Trump Erdogan Congratulation a Green Light to Kill? Turkish jets strike Kurdish fighters in Syria, Iraq’s Sinjar

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Turkish planes bombed Kurdish fighters in Iraq’s Sinjar region and northeast Syria on Tuesday, killing at least 20 in a widening campaign against groups linked to the outlawed Kurdistan Workers Party, a statement from the military said on Tuesday.

Reuters reported, that the operations were carried out in the early hours of Tuesday morning and were aimed at preventing the outlawed group from sending weapons, explosives and fighters for attacks inside Turkey.

In Washington, the State Department said it was deeply concerned by the air strikes, which were not authorized by the U.S.-led coalition fighting Islamic State in Iraq and Syria. Turkey is part of the coalition of more than 60 countries.

“We have expressed those concerns with the government of Turkey directly,” State Department spokesman Mark Toner told reporters on a conference call. “These air strikes were not approved by the coalition and led to the unfortunate loss of life of our partner forces,” he added.

President Trump Side with Islamic State of Turkey Fails to Properly Characterize Armenian Genocide

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WASHINGTON—The White House issued President Donald Trump’s statement on the Armenian Genocide, in which the president did not use the term genocide to describe the events of 1915, once again giving cover to Turkish denials.

Armenian National Committee of America Executive Director Aram Hamparian issued this response to President Donald Trump’s failure to reaffirm the Armenian Genocide in his commemorative statement issued earlier today.

“President Trump has chosen to enforce Ankara’s gag-rule against American condemnation and commemoration of the Armenian Genocide,” stated ANCA Executive Director Aram Hamparian. “In failing to properly mark April 24th, President Trump is effectively outsourcing U.S. genocide-prevention policy to Recep Erdogan, an arrogant and authoritarian dictator who clearly enjoys the public spectacle of arm-twisting American presidents into silence on Turkey’s mass murder of millions of Armenians, Greeks, Assyrians, and other Christians.”

“Today, we remember and honor the memory of those who suffered during the Meds Yeghern, one of the worst mass atrocities of the 20th century.  Beginning in 1915, one and a half million Armenians were deported, massacred, or marched to their deaths in the final years of the Ottoman Empire.  I join the Armenian community in America and around the world in mourning the loss of innocent lives and the suffering endured by so many,” said Trump in his statement.

“As we reflect on this dark chapter of human history, we also recognize the resilience of the Armenian people.  Many built new lives in the United States and made indelible contributions to our country, while cherishing memories of the historic homeland in which their ancestors established one of the great civilizations of antiquity,” added Trump.

“We must remember atrocities to prevent them from occurring again.  We welcome the efforts of Turks and Armenians to acknowledge and reckon with painful history, which is a critical step toward building a foundation for a more just and tolerant future,” concluded Trump.

The U.S. first recognized the Armenian Genocide in 1951 through a filing which was included in the International Court of Justice (ICJ) Report titled: “Reservations to the Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide.” The specific reference to the Armenian Genocide appears on page 25 of the ICJ Report: “The Genocide Convention resulted from the inhuman and barbarous practices which prevailed in certain countries prior to and during World War II, when entire religious, racial and national minority groups were threatened with and subjected to deliberate extermination. The practice of genocide has occurred throughout human history. The Roman persecution of the Christians, the Turkish massacres of Armenians, the extermination of millions of Jews and Poles by the Nazis are outstanding examples of the crime of genocide.”

President Ronald Reagan reaffirmed the Armenian Genocide in 1981. The U.S. House of Representatives adopted legislation on the Armenian Genocide in 1975, 1984 and 1996.

Trump administration unlikely to recognize Genocide – Richard Giragosian

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In an interview with Tert.am, Director of the Regional Studies Center Richard Giragosian shared his expectations of regional developments in the run-up to the Genocide anniversary and the possible use by US President Donald Trump of the right legal wording in his April 24 address.

Mr Giragosian, with April 24 drawing near, Armenians are again beset with the question whether or  not [President] Trump will say “genocide” after all. Most think he will not, as he never spoke about that, and also because [US ] has [common] interests with Turkey. Certain analysts, however, find that Trump is an unpredictable [political] figure who may be expected to do absolutely anything, and even use ‘genocide’.
It is very unlikely that the Trump Administration will recognize the Armenian Genocide on 24 April. While Washington is likely to keep the same wording as previous White House statements, there are two factors suggesting that there will be no change in US policy. First, President Trump is planning a new more friendly strategy to engage Turkey in the fight against ISIS and over operations in Syria. This is also evident in Trump’s very quick message of “congratulations” to President Erdogan, despite even what the State Department saw as a flawed and tainted referendum. A second factor is, of course, Trump’s past business ties to Turkey, which seems to determine his policy preferences, in a negative way ad to the detriment of US interests.
The Armenian organizations in the United States were earlier reported to be trying to establish ties with Trump and his administration, but to the best of our knowledge, they haven’t yet succeeded in their efforts. What reasons do you think prevent them from doing that, and what are your predictions?
I have no idea. I have been living in Armenia for over 10 years, and I do not know what is going on in the Diaspora.
The US-Russia relations have entered a new phase of crisis; moreover, the Russian TV channels seem to be heralding the Third World War. With this in mind, to what extent do you think that [first President Levon] Ter-Petrosyan was realistic in his analysis that Russia has given the west it “Blessing” to settle the [Nagorno-]Karabakh conflict, with only a couple of issues remaining unsettled.

Of the many shortcomings in the former president’s analysis, his most serious error is to place too much hope and far too much power in the assumption that Russia will unilaterally determine the agenda in the region. Even for Putin, he has to be more careful, and the situation is not as basic as Ter Petrosyan seems to believe.
With Turkey’s new Constitution giving an increasing power to Islam, what hazards do you see for Armenia as a neighbor?
President Erdogan will still struggle to manage a growing set of challenges. With an economy in crisis, as unemployment is at a seven-year high, tourism has sagged, and the currency has weakened by one-fifth in less than a year, Erdogan also faces a triad of threats, comprised of a mounting internal military campaign against the Kurds, a difficult cross-border military intervention in Syria, and an ever-present terrorist threat. And with the largest Syrian refugee population in the world, the outlook for the Turkish leader, no matter how powerful, remains as discouraging as it is daunting.


At a meeting with his Azerbaijani counterpart, Iran’s minister of defense expressed hope that the Karabakh issue will be resolved without a third power’s intervention. Do you think it was a hint warning Turkey against intervention, or did he mean a third country?  

Clearly, Iran is pressing to exclude both Turkey and Russia from more active engagement in this region. And despite this message, Iran is not ready to fully or forcefully return as a regional player powerful enough to stand against either Moscow or Ankara, however.
What expectations do you think we should have from the Tsarukyan Alliance [the second majority party elected to parliament]. Is it likely to declare itself an opposition political force, and if so, will it be a radical opposition or just try to offer “an alternative” as did its predecessor [the Prosperous Armenia party].
It is still too soon to say, but there is an interesting scenario, whereby the 30-seat Tsarukyan Alliance is pressured and persuaded to enter into a new “national unity” coalition. Under both options, the Republican Party would still retain the primary position. And even based on the second option, the inherent vulnerability of Gagik Tsarukyan, the oligarch leader of the alliance whose own sources of wealth could always be justifiably used by the state as grounds for a tax audit or criminal investigation, grants the Republicans important leverage. For that reason, it is also highly unlikely that the Tsarukyan Alliance would continue to pose as an opposition force, especially as the political risks for its leader would be too high to forego the obvious benefits of returning to government.

 

Anush Dashtents

WOW, WOW, WOW, Trump Becomes First To Congratulate World Worst Dictator Erdogan On Victory

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Trump erdoganU.S. President Donald J. Trump has become 1st Western leader to congratulate President Recep Tayyip Erdogan over his victory in Sunday’s referendum that significantly expanded presidential power.

Turkish presidential sources said late on Monday that Mr. Trump called his Turkish counterpart and congratulated Mr. Erdogan over the victory in the referendum. A written statement about the call will follow.

In a historic vote on Sunday, only a slight majority of voters granted Mr. Erdogan sweeping new powers that would unwind century-old political system while opposition outcried fraud and widespread irregularities, contesting the result.

The referendum on Sunday effectively changed Turkey’s political system, transferring the center of power from Parliament to the Presidency. Mr. Erdogan will now have powers such as dissolving Parliament, bypassing Parliament through executive decrees and declaring the state of emergency. The constitutional changes also significantly weakened checks and balances and gave the president a greater control over the judiciary.

No Western leader congratulated President Erdogan as of Monday, breaking a long tradition in a sign that they are not pleased with the outcome. Some Western governments said they would make a statement after international observers announce their report about the contested referendum.

Source: http://theglobepost.com/2017/04/17/trump-becomes-first-western-leader-to-congratulate-erdogan-on-victory/

Congressional leaders call on Trump to properly commemorate #ArmenianGenocide

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The Chairmen and Ranking Members on both the House Foreign Affairs and Intelligence Committees joined today with the leadership of the Armenian Caucus and more than eighty of their U.S. House colleagues in calling upon President Trump to properly commemorate the Armenian Genocide in his April 24th White House statement, reported the Armenian National Committee of America (ANCA).

In a bipartisan letter calling upon the President to “appropriately mark April 24th as a day of American remembrance of the Armenian Genocide, signatories noted that, “by commemorating the Armenian Genocide, we renew our commitment to prevent future atrocities.”

“We join with Members of Congress in calling upon President Trump to reject Turkey’s gag rule and embrace an honest American remembrance of the Armenian Genocide,” said ANCA Executive Director Aram Hamparian. “It’s long past time for America to stop outsourcing our national policy on the Armenian Genocide to Recep Erdogan’s increasingly authoritarian and anti-American regime.”

In calling upon President Trump to properly mark April 24th, the signatories highlighted the U.S. record of past recognition, including “President Reagan, who recognized the Armenian Genocide in 1981, and the Eisenhower Administration, which did the same in a 1951 submission to the International Court of Justice.” These actions, as well as resolutions by the House of Representatives in 1975 (H.J.R.148) and 1984 (H.J.R.247), while clearly constituting U.S. recognition, just as clearly did not translate into either consistent official annual Armenian Genocide commemorations or sustained U.S. pressure on Turkey to end its denials of this crime.

The letter specifically cites Christian populations targeted by the Ottoman Empire’s genocidal campaign, including “Armenians, Assyrians, Chaldeans, Greeks, Pontians, Syriacs, and other persecuted peoples.” The full text of the letter is provided below.

On March 22nd, Rep. Trott was joined by Rep. Adam Schiff and the Congressional Armenian Caucus leadership in introducing a bipartisan anti-genocide resolution (H.Res.220) calling on the United States to apply the lessons of the Armenian Genocide in seeking to prevent modern day atrocities across the Middle East. That measure stresses that “proper commemoration and consistent condemnation of the Armenian Genocide will strengthen our international standing in preventing modern day genocides,” and, building upon the 2016 official U.S. designation of an ISIS genocide against Middle East minorities, specifically calls for the following: “[T]he United States, in seeking to prevent war crimes, crimes against humanity, and genocide against Christians, Yezidis, Muslims, Kurds, and other vulnerable religious and ethnic groups in the Middle East, should draw upon relevant lessons of the United States Government, civil society, and humanitarian response to the Armenian Genocide, Seyfo, and the broader genocidal campaign by the Ottoman Empire against Armenians, Assyrians, Chaldeans, Syriacs, Greeks, Pontians and other Christians upon their biblical era homelands.”

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Congressional Letter to President Trump Regarding the Armenian Genocide

Dear Mr. President,

We are writing to encourage you to properly commemorate the Armenian Genocide on April 24th.

In leading an honest and accurate American remembrance of this known case of genocide, you will stand with President Reagan, who recognized the Armenian Genocide in 1981, and the Eisenhower Administration, which did the same in a 1951 submission to the International Court of Justice. The House of Representatives has also commemorated the Armenian Genocide, through HJR148 in 1975 and HJR247 in 1984.

Armenia remains deeply committed to expanding the bonds of friendship that have long connected the American and Armenian peoples. Among the proudest chapters in our shared history is America’s remarkable record of protesting the Genocide and in caring for the survivors of this crime. The United States Ambassador to the Ottoman Empire in 1915, Henry Morgenthau, helped to chronicle the brutal extermination of the Armenian people through a campaign of mass murder and violent expulsion.

In the years after the genocide, Ambassador Morgenthau and other concerned Americans launched the Near East Relief, a Congressionally chartered humanitarian organization, which raised $116 million (over $2.5 billion in 2017 dollars) to aid the victims of the Ottoman Empire’s mass murder of millions of Armenians, Assyrians, Chaldeans, Greeks, Pontians, Syriacs, and other persecuted peoples. The generosity of the American people saved countless lives and helped to ensure the continued survival of the Armenian culture.

The Armenian Genocide continues to stand as an important reminder that crimes against humanity must not go without recognition and condemnation. Through recognition of the Armenian Genocide we pay tribute to the perseverance and determination of those who survived, as well as to the Americans of Armenian descent who have helped strengthen our country. It is our duty to honor those contributions with an honest statement of history recognizing the massacre of 1.5 million Armenians as the 20th century’s first genocide. By commemorating the Armenian Genocide, we renew our commitment to prevent future atrocities.

In that spirit of honoring the victims and redoubling our commitment to prevent genocide, we ask you to appropriately mark April 24th as a day of American remembrance of the Armenian Genocide.

Thank you for taking our views into consideration.

Trump confronts the contradictions of his foreign policy rhetoric

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By Dan Balz

President Trump found himself in unfamiliar territory Friday, generally praised by members of the political and foreign policy establishments but attacked from some quarters of Trump nation for seeming to betray the “America First” pledges that carried him to the White House.

Trump’s decision to fire cruise missiles at a Syrian air base in response to Tuesday’s chemical weapons attack against civilians won support from some people he had routinely disparaged over the past year, among them Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) and Senate Minority Leader Charles E. Schumer (D-N.Y.). Hours before the U.S. attacks, Hillary Clinton had urged just such a response.

But some Trump loyalists saw the president as taking a potentially fateful turn away from what had made him so attractive to his anti-establishment, anti-globalist supporters. Radio talk show host Laura Ingraham tweeted, “Missiles flying. [Florida Sen. Marco] Rubio’s happy. McCain’s ecstatic. Hillary’s on board. A complete policy change in 48 hours.” Farther out on the nationalist fringe, Paul Joseph Watson, an editor at Infowars.com, tweeted, “It’s been fun, lads, but the fun is over.” Watson clarified that he was not turning on Trump completely but was off the train with regard to Syria.

There was always a contradiction in Trump’s campaign rhetoric on foreign policy. He was the get-tough leader who would “bomb the hell out of ISIS” and portrayed himself as a dramatic contrast to what he called the weak and ineffective leadership of Barack Obama. But he was also the reluctant interventionist and criticized rivals who advocated deeper military involvement in Syria.

In his speech to a joint session of Congress, Trump promised to be president of this country, not the rest of the world. On Thursday night, Trump ended his address announcing the missile strike with the traditional “God bless America,” and then, after a brief pause, “and the entire world.”

What the U.S. strike reveals about the president’s foreign policy remains unclear. Was this a one-off action, meant only to tell Syrian President Bashar ­
al-Assad not to use chemical weapons again? Or could the strike lead to deeper U.S. involvement in Syria, depending on reactions by the Syrian regime, Russia, Iran or Islamic State forces?

Trump’s sharp turn in a matter of days was so dramatic and unexpected that it produced whiplash among many foreign policy experts. That he could pivot so quickly is a reminder that Trump is a president without a deeply rooted national security philosophy or worldview, someone who was decisively swayed by the terrible images of dead and dying children that were broadcast around the world after the chemical attack.

Obama had drawn a famous “red line” in Syria in 2012, warning Assad against the use of chemical weapons. His failure to take military action after Syria launched a chemical attack in the summer of 2013 marked one of his greatest foreign policy failures and became a symbol of presidential equivocation and weakness.

Notably, Trump was not among those criticizing Obama at the time. Instead, he warned Obama not to take military action, even when chemical weapons had been used. This week, the chemical attack gave Trump an early opportunity to draw a distinction from his predecessor, even if it contradicted the view he stated in 2013.

Among Trump loyalists who had been sharply critical of Obama on this and other issues, the new president’s decision to attack was welcomed as a sign of how significantly things have changed. Conservative talk show host Bill Mitchell tweeted that Trump’s action “obliterated Obama’s eight years of [weakness] in one bold stroke.”

Source: https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/trump-confronts-the-contradictions-of-his-foreign-policy-rhetoric/2017/04/07/c1a32dfe-1bc4-11e7-855e-4824bbb5d748_story.html?utm_term=.e4075d878ce8

US congressman: Trump will recognize Armenian Genocide

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The US Democrats and Republicans are always ready to stand with their friend and ally, Armenia, said Senator Ed Markey, at a US Congress evening event commemorating Armenian Genocide, reported Voice of America Armenian service.

Numerous Congress members that addressed at the event stressed that they stand with the Armenian people in the recognition of this tragedy.

Congressman Salud Carbajal said the truth is just.

Congresswoman Anna Eshoo noted that she was ashamed that the US has not yet formally recognized Armenian Genocide; but she expressed confidence that they will prevail.

Congressman Dave Trott stated that US President Donald Trump was not a conventional politician, and expressed the hope that Trump will recognize Armenian Genocide, with a statement.

Influential Congressman Adam Schiff also spoke about the chances of Trump’s official recognition of this tragedy.

And as per Congressman Brad Sherman, the US recognition of Armenian Genocide will help the Turkish people themselves in acknowledging their history.