Biden officially recognizes the massacre of Armenians in World War I as a genocide
President Joe Biden on Saturday became the first US president to officially recognize the massacre of the Armenians under the Ottoman Empire as a genocide, risking a potential fracture with Turkey but signaling a commitment to global human rights.
In a statement marking the 106th anniversary of the massacre’s start, Biden wrote, “Each year on this day, we remember the lives of all those who died in the Ottoman-era Armenian genocide and recommit ourselves to preventing such an atrocity from ever again occurring.”
Biden said that the 1915 massacres of Armenians in the Ottoman Empire constituted genocide, a historic declaration that infuriated Turkey and further strained frayed ties between the two NATO allies.
Meanwhile, Armenian President Armen Sarkissian affirmed that US President Joe Biden’s recognition of the Armenian Genocide by Ottomans at the beginning of the last century will constitute a milestone in the relations between Armenia and the United States.
“The recognition of the Armenian Genocide is a courageous and important step for those who seek justice in the world and opens new horizons for US-Armenian relations,” Sarkissian was quoted by TASS news agency as saying in a tweet.
In his turn, Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashanyan affirmed, “Biden’s recognition of the Armenian Genocide constitutes a necessary message to the international community and a strong step on the road to recognition of the truth and the achievement of historical justice. From this standpoint, he gave a courageous example for all those who wish to build a just and tolerant society.”
Biden’s whole stamen is available in the following link:
Inas Abdulkareem