"Efforts by the White House to win quick approval for its new ambassador to Armenia have hit a snag after a bipartisan group of senators, who are members of Foreign Relations Committee, moved to force the US government's formal recognition that Turkey committed the Armenian Genocide during World War I," writes commentator of Agence France-Presse (AFP). AFP reminds that the move came as key committee members expressed open consternation over the mysterious "resignation" of the current US Ambassador to Armenia, John Evans -- after less than two years on the job. The cause of his premature recall was his statement that he considers "events in Ottoman Turkey in 1915 a Genocide."

In the opinion of the AFP commentator, the US does not want exacerbation of relations with Turkey, the only Muslim NATO ally. Turkey is already upset over cross-border raids by Kurdish separatist rebels based in US-occupied Iraq, and is demanding resolute action by the United States to halt the incursions. This is why the term "Armenian Genocide" is not used by official Washington, the AFP commentator supposes.