Senate Foreign Relations Committee to hold confirmation hearing for U.S. Ambassador to Armenia nominee

PanARMENIAN.Net - On Thursday, June 19th, the Senate Foreign Relations Committee is slated to hold a confirmation hearing for U.S. Ambassador to Armenia nominee Marie Yovanovitch.



On March 28, 2008, Pres. Bush nominated Amb. Marie L. Yovanovitch to serve as America's next Ambassador to Armenia. The ANCA has spoken to Committee members about the value of carefully questioning Amb. Yovanovitch on the issues she will face as the U.S. envoy in Yerevan, among them the recognition of the Armenian Genocide, Turkey and Azerbaijan's ongoing blockades of Armenia, and the need for a balanced U.S. role in helping forge a democratic and peaceful resolution to the Nagorno Karabakh conflict. These efforts have been supported by extensive on-line outreach and a national postcard campaign to key Senate Foreign Relations Committee members.



President Bush's previous nominee as U.S. Ambassador to Armenia, Richard Hoagland, was subject to two legislative holds by Sen. Bob Menendez (D-NJ) and was ultimately withdrawn by the Administration, following the nominee's statements denying the Armenian Genocide. The last U.S. Ambassador to Armenia, John Marshall Evans, was fired by President Bush for speaking honestly about the Armenian Genocide. The ANCA led the Armenian American community campaign opposing Hoagland's nomination, stating that a genocide denier could not serve as a credible and effective U.S. spokesperson in Armenia.