White House attempts to block House vote on Armenian Genocide Resolution

PanARMENIAN.Net - The White House expressed regret over the intention of House Speaker Nancy Pelosi to bring the Armenian Genocide Resolution, H.Res.106, to the full House floor.



It will not improve the American-Turkish relations. Neither will it promote the Armenian-Turkish reconciliation, the Bush administration said.



"We regret over the intention of House Speaker Nancy Pelosi to bring the resolution to the full House floor despite concerns expressed by our foreign policy and defense experts and a bipartisan group of former Secretaries of State as well as our Turkish allies," White House Deputy Press Secretary Tony Fratto told reporters in Crawford, Texas.



"We oppose the resolution which can badly damage the American-Turkish relations and U.S. interests in Europe and Middle East," he said.



Yesterday evening, House of Representatives Speaker Nancy Pelosi, the third-highest elected official in the United States, announced intention to bring to the House floor the non-binding resolution approved by the Committee on Foreign Affairs last Wednesday despite Bush administration's opposition.



"I said if the resolution passed the Committee that we would bring it to the floor," Pelosi said on ABC's This Week program. "Genocide still exists. We saw it in Rwanda and we see it in Darfur today."



Presently, the Bush administration attempts to block the anti-Turkish resolution. U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice pledged to take action during phone conversations with the Turkish Prime Minister, President and Foreign Minister. She also called on the Turkish government to refrain from military operations in Northern Iraq, ITAR-TASS reports.