The American Turkish Society expresses profound concern about the strained relations between the United States and Turkey in the aftermath of the adoption of H.Res.106 by the House Committee on Foreign Affairs on October 10, 2007, which characterizes the tragic suffering of Armenians in the Ottoman Empire during World War I as genocide. The stance of the U.S. Congress on this sensitive topic, referring to a deeply painful period in history for both Turks and Armenians, sparked strong opposition by the Turkish people as well as the Turkish government, and undermined the long-standing geo-strategic U.S. -Turkish partnership as well as the budding reconciliation efforts underway between Armenians and Turks.
The Society, as a matter of principle, supports reconciliation and greater dialogue, facilitated by diplomatic, academic, and civil society efforts, between the sovereign nations of Turkey and Armenia and between people of Turkish and Armenian descent wherever they may be located. We encourage open and independent examination of this issue by the international community of historians, as proposed by the Turkish government which has made its archives available for this purpose. We hope that this will be possible in the absence of further actions by the U.S. Congress and Senate, that would surely deepen mistrust and resentment on the part of the Turkish people. Furthermore, we believe that the long-standing and mutually beneficial geo-strategic partnership of the United States and Turkey will prove to be resilient enough to overcome the current tensions. Finally, the acceleration of private investment by U.S. corporations and investment firms in Turkey within the past four years has brought Turkey ever closer to the U.S. business community, a development which in itself will be a force for greater dialogue and compromise on sensitive issues in the coming years without inappropriate and ill-advised Congressional involvement. Turkey is a country undergoing rapid and deep change for the better, and in a clearly Western direction. We in the United States need to nurture, not impede, such beneficial change.
