Ambassador Evans may be fired
I was revolted to learn that the State Department has most likely made the decision to recall Ambassador Evans, simply because he made statements openly acknowledging the Armenian Genocide. It literally causes my stomach to churn when I think about it. This man finally did what the state department and US government should have officially done long ago, and instead of thanking him, they first prevented him from getting an award for it, and now seem poised to dispose of him. Harut Sassounian wrote some excellent columns on it last week, and this week which will bring you up to speed. Armenians everywhere are pissed.
It seems like everywhere we turn, Armenians are being trodden on, in this case we are being trodden on by not even being allowed to have a decent, honest American Ambassador, who stood up for what he believes in, stood up for justice. I doubt this will be the last time I will write about this, but folks, if you are half as angry as I am, take 2 minutes to write an email about this to the State Department (Click on "contact us" and then click on "send a message to the Secretary of State.").
This man stuck his neck out for doing the right thing, and now, as Americans as well as Armenians from around the world, we owe it to him to make sure the US government knows our moral outrage. Their complicity in genocide denial was bad enough, but making the pronouncement of the words "Armenian Genocide" cost a man his job is unbelievable...
It seems like everywhere we turn, Armenians are being trodden on, in this case we are being trodden on by not even being allowed to have a decent, honest American Ambassador, who stood up for what he believes in, stood up for justice. I doubt this will be the last time I will write about this, but folks, if you are half as angry as I am, take 2 minutes to write an email about this to the State Department (Click on "contact us" and then click on "send a message to the Secretary of State.").
This man stuck his neck out for doing the right thing, and now, as Americans as well as Armenians from around the world, we owe it to him to make sure the US government knows our moral outrage. Their complicity in genocide denial was bad enough, but making the pronouncement of the words "Armenian Genocide" cost a man his job is unbelievable...
posted by Raffi K. at 12:24 PM
9 Comments:
Michael said,
Why are we surprised that this occured simply for using the word genocide by a U.S.A representative?
Turkey still is of vast interest to the USA.
So long as this remains the same, it is futile to expect otherwise.
Anyway, even if all the world recognises our genocide, this will not bring an iota of our lands and rights back.
Karabagh is a fine example how to prevail.
Enough said.
2 points, Michael.
1) Why should we ever expect our governments to do anything but the right thing? (I don't expect an answer, I am simply saying, I expect it).
2) What on earth will Turkey do if the US recognizes the genocide? What has it done to other countries, and what can it do that won't harm it?
I believe the Ambassador has not been recalled, after all.
Recognising the Genocide would be a pretty big moral blow, I guess. If the US recognises it, of course, then that would be pretty much the end of that, and the pressure on Turkey would be greater than ever before.
But I expect you're right, Raffi, in that nothing concrete would come out of it, in all likelihood, in terms of reparations or compensation.
Nareg - I think the Ambassador has been recalled (they keep translating the question "has he been recalled?" to say "has he retired?"). All we are getting is bad translations in Yerevan so far, and avoidance of the question in D.C. That makes me very suspicious.
If the ambassador has been recalled then I doubt it is because of his genocide remarks. He made this remarks many months ago unless the US government is extreemly slow in decision making. Also it is worth to consider the time of this recall. In about a month is April 24th so it is not correct time if the recall is due to his genocide remark on the other hand the recall is made after the Rambuliet piece talk failure and at a time of hositilites which may lead to war.
He came, he built the 2nd (or 1st?) largest US embassy in the world and now he leaves. Every embassador has a mission and probably he acomplished his mission pretty quickly. Another Ambassador might be send who is more war like, who can build a stronghold against Iran or utilise the possible war in the region for the benefits of US of A.
From Garo, Montreal/QC./Canada
Every Ambassador comes and go ...one shall check how long he is sevred in Armenian. After all after reading the comment there are three things to pull out: first because of his Genocide remarks...second...U.S. and Iran policy and Armenia as Iran's neighboor ; third almost failure of talk in France between Azerbaijan and Armenia...over Nogorno-Karabagh issue...thus, is it combination of these...and U.S. foreign policy chance....It is less likely that U.S. will recall its Ambassador for a remark...
And also it is pointed out in the remarks made by people that even recognition of the Genocide by U.S. (by the way if then former U.S. Senator Bob Dole (Republicain then for President...promised that he will recognize Armenian Genocide...) seems that could increase the pressure on the Turkey (but won't bring the issue of territorial claim and monetary compensation : over 200 billion U.S. -updated-)...yet if European Union also presure to recognize it....Turkey will have less space to maneouvre....
Garo, wasp, none of your arguements hold up, sorry.
*Evans has clearly not served his entire 3 year term which has always been standard.
*What on earth could this have to do with Iran? So what if things are changing there, this Ambassador is well educated in the region and very capable.
*The Karabakh talks failed because Azerbaijan failed to keep to the compromises it had agreed to earlier. It has nothing to do with Armenia, and even less to do with the US Ambassador to Armenia!!!
*Of course recognition of the genocide by the US increases pressure on Turkey, that is why Turkey is fighting it so much, and precisely why the Turkish govt pressured the State Department into removing Evans.
*Yes, the wheels of the US govt can turn very slowly (I have worked for it), the fact that some time passed means nothing.
*The timing of April 24 is also an invalid arguement since 1) I am sure the State Department could care less and 2) they have still not officially announced it and it will not coincide with April 24 I am sure.
*HE did not build the US Embassy in Armenia, his predecessor did. And the US Embassy in Armenia IS NOT THE BIGGEST IN THE WORLD, it is NOT THE SECOND BIGGEST IN THE WORLD, it is NOT EVEN IN THE TOP TEN. So can we kill this rumor already?
Uffa... I am suprised at the energy put into coming up with reasons why this is not happening. It IS happening. Congressmen are talking about it, newspapers are writing about it, questions are being dodged, and the only possible chance to stop it, as unlikely as it is to work at this point, is to raise a massive ruckus - and thus at least create some embarassment for them and let them hear what the people they are representing think of their Neo-Nazi policies.
I was assigned to the US Embassy in Yerevan up until the end of last year. AMB Evans struck me as the consummate career diplomat and detail oriented bureaucrat who
who focuses on form over substance & dutifully following every dictum from
Washington. As such, I was beyond flabbergasted when Evans made the genocide comment out of turn, but after the Department of State let him stay on without any kind of sanction, I knew his out of character faux-pas had been staged from on high, perhaps to indelicately warn Turkey that we are prepared to reshape our alliance in light of their failure to support us on Iraq.
If Evans was going to be recalled, it would have happened at the time he made the 'error' not at the end of his normal term of assignment. Ambassador postings to places such as Armenia are normally 2-3 years max and are filled by senior career cadre from the Department of State as opposed to political appointments by the President.
For the Armenian press to report that Evans is being recalled long after the event is absurd but not surprising given the sad state of professional journalism in Armenia and the rest of the FSU.
Hi Embassy Person,
What can I say? You don't actually have a source at the embassy for what you are stating as fact. The fact that they didn't fire him right away is not proof of anything. They already took the unprecedented step of preventing a non-Agency group from giving the Ambassador a constructive criticism award. The wheels turn slowly, ambassadors are not recalled quickly, and I assume Turkey's pressure has slowly been mounting in the background, because publicly they were frighteningly silent.
I do not doubt my actual sources and am sure Harut Sassounian does not doubt his. It is an understatement to say he is rather well connected. That the State Dept has told him he is out is fact, like it or not, and in this case, I wish I were wrong. The fact that the Ambassador is indeed a man to follow form, and who took his job representing the USA very serious makes his genocide comment even more respectable. That he did it with sanction in order to better represent what the USA stands for is incredibly admirable. That it would cost him his job is something that must have crossed his mind. I have such a deep respect for him you cannot imagine. His wife quietly sat through the entire proceedings of the genocide conference in Yerevan, for 3 days, something very few Armenians bothered do, and something he was clearly not permitted to do just emphasized the fact that they care about the issue personally...
Alright, I've already said enough on this subject...
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