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.
It could have been worse: could have been an insensitive Tweet. Good to have the 1951 written filing at The Hague on the public record here.
He us weak and driver by Zionist Israel.
I agree, my trust in him is losing by the day, I hope he puts his acts together in coming years and not end up like Obama a gimmick in the hands of Erdogan.
Amerika accepts 2215 as genocide.
I am sure US presidents say genocide until 3015.
This brain and the armenians are a people you will always be back in the world
I happen to like our president’s comments very much. It is not necessary to use the catch word ‘genocide’ when you use the very appropriate word “atrocity”. Let us not stumble over wordage, but celebrate his exemplary praise of our nationality and our contributions to America.
Gloria,
I would ask you check out this president’s predecessor’s April 24th statements. They are remarkably similar and both issuers are worthy of tremendous scorn.
Pretty much an exact copy of what “Obama” stated during the 8 years.
I agree.
IT IS A FACT MR. TRUMP THAT TURKEY IS GUILTY OF THE ARMENIAN GENOCIDE, WHY DO POLITICS OVERRIDE THE TRUTH OF MURDER AND HUMANITY, A COUNTRY HAS TO PROTECT HUMANITY THE WORLD WILL ALWAYS HAVE INNOCENT BLOOD ON THEIR HANDS WHEN THEY DO NOT PROTECT THE INNOCENT AND SIDE WITH THE GUILTY FOR SELF INTEREST. MAN’S INHUMANITY TO MAN WILL CONTINUE AS LONG AS COUNTRIES DO NOT STAND UP FOR THE TRUTH. JUST PICTURE AND IMAGINE THE SLAUGHTER OF INNOCENT MEN,WOMEN,CHILDREN AND BABIES AND THE FEW THAT SURVIVED SCATTERED AROUND THE WORLD STILL WITH OPEN WOUNDS DEMANDING THEIR RIGHTS AND THE TRUTH THAT TURKEY COMMITTED AGAINST ARMENIANS AND OTHER CHRISTIANS, ARMENIANS WILL ALWAYS DEMAND JUSTICE MAY OUR MARTYRS REST PEACE, I BELIEVE THEY WILL NOT UNTIL JUSTICE IS DONE!!!!!!
Presidents come and go who cares, we will wait thousand years if needed until justice is served., meanwhile we will rub their face with the rotten values they preach.
I have grown NUMB to this American Presidential Phenomena… Lying seems to be the #1 requisite for the path to the ultimate throne at the White House! Just like Obama, Bush, Clinton et al… Donald Duck is the latest replacement for the COWARDLY WEASLE Liar-In-Chief to appease the Sultan of Turkey of the day… Yet ANOTHER U.S. president lacking adequate COURAGE reinforced by the TRUTH!
And why are we surprised? Congratulations to all Trump-voting short-sighted Armenians!
The fact that Turkey is a militarily strategic ally of the United States makes it impossible or impermissible for any president to act or say according to our wishes. One would think it comes more natural for them to stand by us, a Christian race, and the first to accept Christianity, but the dirtiness of politics come into play here.
Why are we surprised? Didn’t Obama –the beacon of human rights– do the same for 8 consecutive years?
This is not a Trump, Obama Bush or any other administration policy. This is an American administration policy. No matter which administration happens to be in office, the underlying permanent American administration has precedence over all matters of national concern.
What is the expected outcome of the U.S. calling the Genocide “genocide”? When Reagan called it a genocide – what was the result? Is there the possibility of achieving more tangible results if these efforts and money was re-directed to other initiatives? There is no sarcasm in these questions – I’m failing to understand what the tangible outcomes are of the U.S. using the term “genocide” to justify all this effort.
Frankly speaking neither me.
President Trump does not hesitate to omit the word genocide when referring to the massacre of 1.5 million Armenians at the hands of the Turks.
I would dare President Trump to ignore the word Holocaust when referring to Hitler’s massacre of the Jews. President Trump would be driven out of office pronto and deservedly so.
You are right, he wouldn’t dare ignore the word Holocaust, they would fry his bals.
What a shame that USA and some other western powers, including Israel, use ‘the blood of a million and a half Armenians’ as a BARGAINING CHIP in their policies with Turkey.
This,in my view is “political prostitution” that brings great shame to these countries, especially the Jewish people-as if
they have some guilt to conceal
Truth cannot be shadowed forever and those responsible doing it or associating with or remaining silent about it are equally
guilty.
I am certain the consciousness of world leaders and politicians will soon burst their souls to accept the barbarous act that the Ottoman Turks carried on a cultured, prosperous and peace loving people, right in their own homeland where they had prospered for thousands of centuries.
I am the grand son of grand parents whom, except for one, have never seen …Aunts or uncles whom,even, the photos, never had to see. Yes, one of a few lucky boys to have parents saved from this horrible GENOCIDE.
I don’t wish Turks or others to go through the history that I have heard from parents and elders who were saved by luck.
When my mother met her brother in Marseilles, traveling from Beirut, after 30 years of separation, in a conversation related to genocide, I was surprised to hear my uncle say,”My boy, there were good Turks, our neighbors looked up to us, they leaned from us and respected us” I thought what a great hearted man he is knowing well what he had been through…He sought and saw, however tiny, the good in the evil.
Yes, a true Christian Armenian…among many like him.
This is not a Trump, Obama or Bush administration decision, it’s a American administration policy.
Wasn’t Woodrow Wilson the first US President who recognized the Armenian Genocide? I know the term “Genocide” was not coined until 1947 by professor Lemkin; however, President Wilson used the words “total extermination” and “the annihilation of a race” when referring to what happened to the Armenians between 1894 and 1918 in what was then the Ottoman Empire. President Wilson’s vocabulary accurately describes the meaning of Genocide.
Get ready and be prepared:With new Erdogan powers in hand another Genocide is on the cards!!
It is of Turkey’s interest to recognize the Genocide, the longer is dragged the more the name of Turkey is sinked in the mud, and more countries will threaten Turkey with the recognition, this problem will and not can’t go away, OPEN your eyes Turkey, don’t let your stupidity traumatize coming generations, RECOGNIZE and move on.