He is the first President of the United States to do so

For decades, the White House has avoided labeling the systematic murder of Armenians and mass deportation to the Ottoman Empire as genocide. Until this Saturday. On the occasion of the Day of Action for Tolerance and Respect between Peoples, US President Joe Biden argued that “the American people honor all Armenians who perished in the genocide that began 106 years ago.” and added the United States to the list of 30 countries that recognize them.

It was one of his campaign promises. Exactly a year ago, on what the United States calls Armenian Genocide Remembrance Day, Biden promised to recognize it when he arrived at the White House. His predecessor Donald trump he had avoided doing so and simply called it “one of the worst mass atrocities of the 20th century”. Is Barack obama, of which Biden was vice president, had been precise in the word. Although he also promised this when running for the White House, the former Democratic president ended his second term with a formula similar to that of the Republican. “The first mass atrocity,” he called.

This Saturday, Biden took a break. “Every year on this day, we remember the lives of all those who died during the Ottoman era of the Armenian genocide and we pledge once again to prevent such atrocities from happening again,” he said. he said in a statement. He thus became the first American president to officially say that the massacre and mass deportation of at least 1.5 million Armenians, which began on April 24, 1915 in the former Ottoman EmpireIt was genocide. “We pay tribute to the victims of Meds Yeghern (the Armenian term for genocide) so that the horrors of what happened are never lost to history. And we remember to always remain vigilant against the corrosive influence of hatred in all its forms, ”adds the document.

In the statement, Biden also referred to the Armenian diaspora, especially the Armenian-American community who live in the North American country and who for years listened to Washington’s promises of recognition without eliciting an effective response. “For decades, Armenian immigrants enriched the United States in countless waysBut they have never forgotten the tragic story that brought so many of their ancestors to our shores. We honor their history. We see this pain. We affirm history. We are not doing this to pass the blame, but to make sure that what happened never happens again, ”added the President.

Biden also called for looking to the future, to “a world that is not sustained by the daily evils of intolerance, a world in which human rights are respected and in which all human beings can live.” their lives in dignity and security ”. He ended the statement by asking to renew the “resolution to prevent future atrocities around the world” and “seek healing and reconciliation”.

The recognition came a day after the US president’s phone conversation with Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, his peer of the Republic of turkey, the successor state of the Ottoman Empire. According to information released by the White House on the conversation, Biden expressed interest in “a constructive bilateral relationship, with expanded areas of cooperation and effective management of disagreements.” They also agreed to hold a NATO summit meeting next June to discuss a wide range of regional and bilateral issues.

In the official statement released after the call, the administration made no mention of Biden’s advance on his plans to officially recognize the Armenian Genocide. However, sources familiar with the call told The Associated Press that The US President informed Erdogan of the document he would publish this Saturday.

Closely linked to Turkey’s status as a privileged ally as a NATO member is the United States’ long-standing refusal to call the massacre genocide. The declaration of this Saturday is limited to evoking the time of the Ottoman Empire, without referring to the current republic. Officially, Ankara recognizes the “tragic experience” of the Armenians, but denies the number of victims and, above all, rejects the figure of genocide..

Biden’s statement also came after several requests from members of the US Congress asking the president to “clearly and directly” recognize the Armenian geonocide. Last month, 38 senators sent him a letter asking the White House to use this classification for the facts, a trial that was repeated this week.

This is not the first time that Congress has taken action on the issue due to executive inaction. In 2019, while Trump is still in power, the Senate adopted a declaration recognizing the genocide. At the time, Ankara replied that the measure endangered “the future of bilateral relations” and the State Department was quick to point out that parliamentary action did not mark the country’s foreign policy.

This time there was also a response from Turkey. “We have nothing to learn from anyone about our own past. Political opportunism is the greatest betrayal of peace and justice. We entirely reject this statement based solely on populism, ”he tweeted. Mevlut Cavusoglu, the Turkish Minister of Foreign Affairs.

For Armenia, on the other hand, recognition of the United States is excellent news. “It means the end of a long history of denial. For me that means the United States is on the side of justice, human rights and for me personally it means that justice will prevail and humanity will prevail, ”he said. Varuzhan Nersesyan, the Armenian Ambassador to Washington speaking to CNN.