ANKARA - British Financial Times newspaper wrote that U.S. legislators defied the Bush administration and angered the Turkish government when they passed the resolution regarding Armenian allegations on the incidents of 1915.
The article written by Daniel Dombey reads, "The 27-21 decision by the House of Representatives Committee on Foreign Affairs, which paves the way for a vote in the full House in coming weeks, came in spite of a warning from President George W. Bush and his top officials that co-operation with Turkey and the fate of US troops in Iraq could be at stake. It also comes as the United States seeks to convince Turkey not to carry out a large-scale military incursion into northern Iraq to crack down on Kurdish militants."
"But only hours before the committee voted Mr. Bush warned that passage of the resolution 'would do great harm to our relations with a key ally in NATO and in the global war on terror'. U.S. officials say passage of the resolution by the full House will make Washington's bid to convince Turkey not to launch a military incursion into Iraq much harder. Public outrage against the Kurdish separatist PKK has flared in the wake of an attack in which 13 soldiers were killed on Sunday," it said.
The newspaper also added that Washington's push for Turkey take a more collaborative approach on combating PKK has also been complicated by the resignation of Joseph Ralston, the retired US general who had been seeking to increase Washington- Ankara cooperation against the militant group.
(UK-ULG)