Azernews.Az

The nominee for the post of the US ambassador to Armenia has said she did not recognize the 1915 developments in Ottoman Turkey as "genocide of Armenians".
Marie Yovanovitch avoided using the phrase in her confirmation hearing on Thursday, although she acknowledged that Armenians had suffered mass deaths and persecution at the hands of Turks between 1915 and 1923.
In reply to lawmakers' questions at the House of Representatives Foreign Affairs Committee, she said her position was based on the clear-cut US state policy, as President George Bush and his two predecessors rejected the "genocide" allegations as well.
Bush's last nominee for the position, Richard Hoagland, also refused to use the phrase, and his nomination was withdrawn in the face of strong congressional opposition.
But it remains uncertain whether the Senate will block the confirmation of Yovanovitch to a post that has been unfilled for two years.
Yovanovitch said the key achievements would be putting an end to Armenia's isolation, normalizing Turkish-Armenian relations and opening the border between the two countries. She said this was a complicated process that would take time.
"But we are hopeful for success. The White House leader believes the relations could be normalized," the diplomat said.
Yovanovitch's statement has infuriated the Armenian community. Executive director of the Armenian National Committee of America (ANCA) Aram Hamparian expressed deep concern over the utterances.
During the hearing, which was entitled "The Caucasus: Frozen conflicts and closed borders", Yovanovitch outlined priorities in her future activity, saying she would focus on forging Turkey-Armenia relations and negotiated settlement to the Armenia-Azerbaijan conflict over Upper (Nagorno) Garabagh. She added that restoring stability in the region would be a key goal if her candidacy is approved by the Senate.
Thursday's hearing was the first of a few hurdles Yovanovitch will need to clear in a process that could conclude as early as the beginning of July or continue into the second half of summer.
A 22-year career diplomat, Yovanovitch is currently the ambassador to the Kyrgyz Republic. Yovanovitch previously served as Senior Advisor to the Under Secretary for Political Affairs at the Department of State. Earlier in her career, she served as Deputy Chief of Mission in Kiev. Yovanovitch received her bachelor's degree from Princeton University and her master's degree from the National War College.