Armenian, Assyrian and Hellenic Genocide News

Clinton, US military & the Jewish lobby
by Ilnur Cevik - Turkish Daily News
Posted: Saturday, October 21, 2000 01:02 am CST

If it weren't for the Middle East crisis, the US House of Representatives would have pushed through the 'genocide' resolution

Editorial by Ilnur Cevik
ilnur.cevik@tdn1.com

It is very sad that violence has gripped the Middle East causing fatalities, yet it seems even some good has come out of evil for Turkey.

Turks are jubilant that bowing to national security concerns raised by President Bill Clinton and the U.S. military, House Speaker Dennis Hastert shelved legislation that would label the killing of Armenians in Turkey nearly a century ago a genocide.

"Every patriotic American should heed the president's request," Hastert, an Illinois Republican, said in a statement which came after last-minute appeals to him from the president and the Joint Chiefs of Staff.

As we pointed out in our earlier editorials, American politicians had failed to consider the negative implications of the resolution which could have ruined Turkey's thriving strategic relationship with the United States. But Hastert's reaction shows that congressional leaders at last put aside vote considerations and decided to concentrate on American security interests.

But what happened for Hastert to come to such a conclusion? We feel it was the crisis in the Middle East.

Until the crisis erupted, even optimistic pro-Turkish observers were saying the passing of the resolution in an election year in the United States was a foregone conclusion. It is a fact that the presidential and the congressional races are very tight and that no one could afford to alienate the Armenian-American voters, especially in states like California.

But it seems once the violence in the Middle East showed that antagonizing Turkey, a key country in the region, had the potential of ruining the delicate balances in the region, the U.S. administration, which was already pushing for the scrapping of the resolution, decided to make an extra effort to block it.

We are told both Congress and the White House came under pressure from the famous Jewish lobby to act on behalf of Turkey. Hastert may not have bowed to pressures if the Jewish lobby hadn't prepared the groundwork that allowed him to think about American security interests as a "patriot" when he was prepared to disregard them only two weeks ago...

No one could afford Turkey being pushed closer to the Arab camp in these delicate times. No one could afford the potential of giving Saddam Hussein a new trump card. No one could afford antagonizing the Turkish public...

So our gratitude goes to President Clinton, the State Department, the Pentagon and the friends of Turkey in the United States who defied the odds and struggled to preserve Turkish-American ties. Let us also not forget the contributions of the Turkish diplomats and President Ahmet Necdet Sezer who frequently communicated with Clinton in order to beat the resolution...

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