Trump admin: policy unchanged after Senate Armenia vote

By Michael Hernandez

WASHINGTON (AA) - The Trump administration distanced itself Tuesday from Congress, saying its policy is unchanged after the Senate passed a resolution recognizing the 1915 events as genocide.

State Department spokesman Morgan Ortagus said in a two-sentence statement that the administration's "views are reflected in the President’s definitive statement on this issue from last April."

In that statement U.S. President Donald Trump commemorated the "Meds Yeghern," an Armenian phrase meaning "Great Crime," but stopped short of recognizing a genocide took place.

"We pledge to learn from past tragedies so as to not to repeat them," Trump said at the time. "We welcome the efforts of Armenians and Turks to acknowledge and reckon with their painful history. And we stand with the Armenian people in recalling the lives lost during the Meds Yeghern and reaffirm our commitment to a more peaceful world."

Last week, the U.S. Embassy in Ankara posted the same statement as the one released by the State Department, but Tuesday's statement is the first time the department issued the comments itself.

The Senate last week unanimously passed S.Res.150, which recognized Armenian claims of the 1915 events, after the House of Representatives did so in October.

Turkey's position on the events of 1915 is that the deaths of Armenians in eastern Anatolia took place when some sided with invading Russians and revolted against Ottoman forces. A subsequent relocation of Armenians resulted in numerous casualties.

Turkey objects to the presentation of the incidents as "genocide" but describes the 1915 events as a tragedy in which both sides suffered casualties.

Ankara has repeatedly proposed the creation of a joint commission of historians from Turkey and Armenia plus international experts to examine the issue.