BAKU, Azerbaijan, Nov. 4
By Azer Ahmadbayli – Trend:
Last week, the US congressmen approved sanctions against Turkey for its military operation in Syria, the purchase of Russian S-400 air defense systems, and adopted a resolution recognizing the so-called Armenian genocide of 1915.
The decision looks lame and belated, raising certain questions.
Military operation in Northern Syria
President Trump ordered the withdrawal of US troops from Northern Syria, then convinced Ankara to suspend the operation, praised Turkey for complying with the truce agreements and instructed the finance minister to lift all sanctions imposed on Turkey. Seemingly, the tension between US and Turkey should have been removed from the agenda, but a week later the House of Representatives does exactly the opposite: condemns Ankara and votes for the adoption of sanctions.
Purchase of S-400
For a long time Washington evaded the sale of Patriot missiles to Turkey, or covered a possible deal with disadvantageous terms. When Turkey made similar proposal to Russia, the United States still had the opportunity to reach an understanding with its NATO ally, but instead Washington started issuing ultimatums. The result is not surprising: Turkey bought Russian weapons, albeit on favorable terms.
"Armenian Genocide"
As for the resolution on "genocide", the efforts of the Armenian Diaspora on this issue have never actually ceased. According to Mihran Toumajian, Director of the West Coast Armenian Assembly of America, in the weeks leading up to the vote, Armenian lobbyists were working even on weekends to ensure mass support for the document, a BBC report said.
All that Democrats had to do was to use this political tool against President Trump showing that he is unable to chose friends of America and diagnose the “falsehood” of Turkey. With the historical example of the 1915 events, the Democrats tried to present Turkey as an intolerant, aggressive country, 100 years later annihilating the Kurds.
Probably some influential Democrats in the US, as well as some EU leaders, would very much like to see Turkey outside NATO. Then they would feel more comfortable when talking to Ankara. By recognizing “genocide,” it was important for Democrats to show that the alliance with Turkey as a member of NATO, which under previous US administrations was essential for the interests of the United States, is not a “sacred cow,” and that Trump's policy towards Ankara is deeply flawed.
So, there is no logical explanation for the adoption of anti-Turkish resolutions, except, perhaps, one: the “sins” of Turkey were another good reason for Democrats to accuse Trump of incompetence and damage to the US interests.
Discrepancies between the US legislative and executive branches have surfaced right after Trump took the office. Dem representatives make claims against the president, who, as they say, issues too many executive orders, which overreach beyond his constitutional powers, and is not much bothered with them to be passed through the Congress. All of that has made a good ground for bad blood between them.
Disagreements between Trump and Democrats over the allocation of funds for the construction of the US-Mexico border barrier and the subsequent longest shutdown of the government agencies in US history, attempts to repeal Affordable Care Act, the curtailment of the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program – all that and more accumulated critical mass for the ongoing crisis.
The antagonism reached its peak after a telephone conversation between Trump and the President of Ukraine in late July, in which he allegedly tried to convince the Ukrainian leadership to compromise Joe Biden, a possible rival in the upcoming presidential elections. As a result, last week the House of Representatives of the US Congress approved a resolution that authorizes the official start of the impeachment procedure of the president.
Turkey, it seems, has got in the middle of the war launched by Democrats against President Trump, which, at all costs, want to remove him from office by impeachment or at least prevent his election to a second term.
It would also be a good gift for them if President Erdogan's upcoming visit to Washington is disrupted.
In this context, it would be pertinent to quote Corey Lewandowski, a campaign manager of Trump’s 2016 campaign for President of the US, who has recently said that “Democrats hate Trump more than they love America.”
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