So-Called Armenian Genocide Bill Postponed to Next Week

The Senate will reconvene on Monday after a weekend break. The Armenian lobby planned that the bill would be submitted to the Senate appended to the U.S. Budget bill prepared by the U.S. State Department. The Senate postponed the budget bill and discussed another bill, in effect postponing discussion of the Armenian bill to next week.

Turkish observers in Washington evaluate the postponement as a good sign, but expect the Armenian lobby to continue its efforts. The observers believe the U.S. government is working to obstruct the bill over concern for the anti-U.S. sentiment in Turkey generated by last week’s detention of Turkish soldiers in northern Iraq, and over concern that Foreign Affairs Minister Abdullah Gul’s U.S. visit next week be conducted in a positive atmosphere.

Ali H. Aslan / Washington D.C. / USA