Joe Biden is now the first
US president to acknowledge
the Armenian genocide, which has,
of course,
increased US tensions with Turkey.
We'll get to that in just a second.
But he has put out
a formal announcement.
This happened on April 24th,
which is the day that the genocide
is commemorated.
It's also the day that Armenians
across the country usually engage
in demonstrations in order to
pressure the US government to
finally acknowledge
the genocide as a genocide.
Now, in Biden's statement he said,
quote 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.
And we remember that so we remain
ever vigilant against the corrosive
influence of hate in all its forms.
Now he says each year we remember
but the fact of the matter is no,
the US government doesn't remember
each year.
Previous US presidents have
literally campaigned on
acknowledging the Armenian
genocide.
And then as soon as they win
the election, they immediately back
away from doing so.
And it doesn't matter if we're
talking about Democrats or
Republicans, Obama
campaigned on it.
And didn't follow through Trump
campaigned on it clearly didn't
follow through even though many
Armenians in the US are Trump
supporters.
The Trump administration pushed
back on the congressional attempt
to recognize the mass killings as
a genocide in 2019.
Even when
legislation passed overwhelmingly,
with huge bipartisan support.
The State Department declared that
it didn't reflect the official
position of the administration.
So this is the same pattern
that we've
seen with previous presidents.
Biden had also campaigned on this
and to be quite honest with you,
I wasn't holding my breath and I'm
genuinely surprised by pleasantly
surprised that he did this.
Now we should discuss why he did
this in a minute but Cenk,
initial thoughts.
>> Yeah so,
American presidents have been lying
about this for
decades, almost everyone of them
says they're going to do it,
and then everyone until now had not
done it.
So you've got to ask why, right?
So the difference is politics,
electoral politics versus governing
politics.
So electoral politics, there's more
Armenians in America than Turks.
So every candidate, Republican or
Democrat is going to want
to lean towards Armenian community.
That by the way, that doesn't make
it right or wrong, okay? I'm just
explaining the politics. I'll talk
about the policy in a second, okay?
But when they get into office,
they realize, Turkeys in a very
central geographic region.
We really need them in it to check
Russia and then really need them in
Syria, Iraq, oftentimes Lebanon,
Israel, Ukraine and it goes Iran.
And so there's in such a strategic
location that US government's
thought they needed to be appeased.
So that's why you see this constant
while you call whatever you like,
flip flops or lying about what they
were going to do.
Now so why did Biden choose
politically to do it now?
Number one, they learned a lesson
from the Obama administration,
former Obama officials including
Ben Rhodes, and Susan Powers,
basically, and Rose I think had
this exact comment.
Better do it in the first year,
because it gets harder every
single year.
Every year there's a new
controversy in the Middle East and
Russia etc. My god turkeys too
important.
We don't want to anchor them now.
So it gets harder and harder to do
as you go along you forget to do it
just pull the band aid off, okay?
So that was one lesson learned all
about Obama administration.
The second reason more important
reason is because Turkey
at this point is historically weak
strategically in the region.
Yes, because Erdogan has tanked
the economy and and he's alienated
almost every ally in the region.
So there is no better time from
America's perspective to
declare this then now what is that
going to do?
If he overreacts, he endangers
the Turkish economy even more and
he recently his party lost
elections in Istanbul and that's
got them really worried is that was
by far the largest city in Turkey.
And if you lose power in Istanbul,
you might lose power
in the whole country.
And so if honestly,
if Biden didn't do it this year,
they were never going to do it.
>> Right.
>> This is the best time to do it,
and they did.
I'll get to the policy in a second,
but- >> Yes, exactly.
I mean, you're absolutely right.
And you mentioning that Turkey
was seen as a check on Russia is
an important point because in
recent years Turkey and
Russia have engaged in far more
diplomatic ties.
For instance, Turkey
did buy weaponry from Russia and
that infuriated the Trump
administration.
But that's just a little taste of
the growing tensions between
the United States and
Turkey because there are growing
tensions as a result of Erdogan and
his Chaotic leadership.
So you're right about all of that.
This CNN video also touches on
other potential factors into
Biden's decision making here and
I want you to listen to it and
then we'll kind of unpack it.
>> Why did Joe Biden go there when
so many other presidents have not?
Multiple reasons, as I said,
probably number one,
this was a campaign promise for
Joe Biden but also, he has been
trying to reestablish the United
States as a leader on the issue
of human rights around the world.
And then there's the personal
relationship, the President did get
on the phone with Turkish President
Erdogan on Friday to tell him that
this was going to happen.
This was described
to CNN as Kevin Laptop as more or
less a tense call that also have to
say Joe Biden has been a critic of
President Erdogan for some time.
He's referred to him
as an autocrat, then even suggested
Fred, that the United States should
back an opponent politically of
Erdogan in Turkey.
>> In fact,
the messaging coming from
the State Department in response to
Turkey has been pretty critical.
For instance, Secretary of State
Anthony Blinken in his confirmation
hearing referred to Turkey
as a strategic so called strategic
partner of ours while criticising
its drift toward Russia.
Turkey and Russia have occasionally
found their interests aligned when
it comes to American influence.
The Trump administration also
sanctioned Turkey last year over
its purchase of a Russian missile
defense system.
In the beginning of the video,
we showed you the desire to really
reassert the United States as
a leader on human rights is BS.
Everyone needs to stop repeating
that nonsense.
There's nothing about,
this is not about morality.
This is not about
doing the ethical or right thing on
the international stage,
especially when the United States
is involved, but every country.
Geopolitical issues always
have to do with self interest, and
that's what this is about.
The United States has a bad
relationship with Erdogan right
now, and that's the reason why this
decision was made.
This was the right decision, I'm
not trying to take away from that.
But there's a very obvious and real
reason why this happened, it has
nothing to do with human rights.
If anything, maybe the Biden
administration wants to be able to
continue talking about China
engaging in genocide against
Uighur Muslims and in order to do
that they think they need to
acknowledge the Armenian genocide.
This provides some cover for that.
But it's all self interested stuff.
It has nothing to do with human
rights, which is why this issue had
not been acknowledged formally
until now.
>> Yeah, so there's other
complexities to Turkeys not toeing
the line on Iran, how dangerous
they are and how we need to invade.
Turkey use have a great
relationship with Israel.
Now they have a very poor
relationship with Israel.
As a the Russian
arms purchases didn't help anybody.
All these things are factors Trump
should have recognized Armenian
genocide and all this fans thought
he was going to and how he was
going to be tough and strong.
He did the exact opposite. Not only
did he not recognize it,
he gave everyone a giant gift when
he withdrew from northern Syria.
And that was just personal
corruption. It appears that he has
significant financial interest in
Turkey and everyone just had
to make a call and
Trump was like, yeah, sure.
I don't care about Armenian people,
Syrian people, I don't care Kurdish
I don't care about any of them.
Well, what Where's the money, okay?
So now, hence,
give Biden a lot of credit for
doing the principal thing,
even if it's for geopolitical and
strategic reasons.
>> Yes.
>> Okay. Now,
just a quick note on the policy.
Look that Turkish Government has no
leg to stand on.
They say this and
solstar Turkishness who cares?
That's not a thing that is criminal
in Turkey.
But it's absurd.
And saying that there's the country
in this is not the Republic of
Turkey.
It was the old
Ottoman Empire, right?
There's something wrong doesn't
mean every person is guilty.
And that's the thing that a healthy
country does to get better.
So just like here in America, when
we criticize American government,
it doesn't mean we hate America.
It means we want America to
get better.
It's not insulting Americanness.
And then Armenia say that one and
a half million people died.
Historians generally agree with
them.
The Turkish government says no,
we only killed 300,000 people.
[LAUGH] >> How is that any better?
That's like going into a trial
on an assault and say,
this literally happened to a friend
of mine where the other guy said,
no, Your Honor, I didn't hit him in
the face I hit him in the stomach.
That's assault either way, and
this is genocide either way.
So just in case you're unclear,
genocide definition is a crime of
acting to, quote, destroy in whole
or in part, and national, ethnic,
racial or religious group.
So was this an ethnic group that
was targeted at the time?
Of course,
they didn't target Norwegians or
they target Armenians, right?
And was it in whole or in part, of
course, Sir Beneatha was considered
a genocide by the United Nations
only 8000 people died.
Now look, I say only 8000 people
dying is awful.
And they were targeted in that case
because they were Muslims.
And so, and I want you to know this
context to two last things.
At the same time.
Yes, Anna's right.
It is different pronunciations,
but it's actually my last name.
Euchre, right?
The Euchre Muslims in China, Biden
said which the Chinese government
is doing to those Euchre Muslims is
also a genocide, okay?
So he's not trying to insult
the Chineseness of China.
He's saying don't do that
to Euchre Muslims, right?
And that is a genocide and
so they are being fair in how they
are applying it.
Now look I'm Turkish American so
I have plenty of Turkish friends
here that and back in Turkey that
objected this of course, right?
Because of their Turkish pride,
etc, right?
And so one I just told you all the
reasons why it doesn't make sense.
But two, they say they're targeting
us because we're Turkish and
they want to spread these things
about Turks and Muslims.
First. I love you guys but
don't flatter yourself, okay?
>> No one's in America thinking
about like, what can we do to
damage the reputations of Turks in
Turkey like- >> I got news for you.
>> We got problems [LAUGH]
>> In America, for better for
worse, no one cares about Turks.
Like only from your
Turkish perspective,
do you think they're obsessed with
taking us down a notch?
They're not obsessed with
you at all.
They never think about you,
except for situations like this.
>> Yeah.
>> But more importantly they say
but they're going to teach all
the children to hate Turks.
Okay, I get it,
that's a concern, right?
But guys, we also teach them about
the Holocaust and
that's Germans and we teach them
about the rape from nine King, and
that's the Japanese.
We're not telling them hate Germans
or Japanese people.
Is it a coincidence that, that
happens, the Germans Japanese or
the Turks were there main opponents
of America in World War I and World
War II, likely not a coincidence.
There have been dozens if not
hundreds of genocides in the world.
We have focused on those for
good reasons, but also for
geopolitical reasons, etc, right?
But America should be honest with
itself too.
We should recognize the genocide of
the Native Americans.
And I arguably based on this
definition what we did to Africa is
that we brought here now African
Americans was that a genocide?
Of course, beatings,
lynching's rape, murder,
you name it.
So let's all Americans, Turks,
everyone be honest about what
has happened in the past so
that we do not repeat it and
we move forward and let's not
target any particular people.
But let's be honest about everybody
and all the crimes of the past so
that, again, we can get better.
>> So I got to end the story with
Erdogan's reaction because it does
actually illustrate a cultural
disconnect between Turks and
Americans.
Because he put this statement out
there thinking like, yeah, well
then I'm going to call you guys out
and you guys are going to hate it.
But most Americans read this and
they're like, yep you're right. He
said this, if you say genocide,
then you need to look at yourselves
in the mirror and make an
evaluation. The native Americans,
I don't even need to mention them.
What happened is clear.
While all these truths are out
there you cannot pin the genocide
accusation on the Turkish people.
So the last part of that statement
is ridiculous.
The first part of that
statement is accurate.
Yes, the European settlers in
the United States, committed
a genocide of the Native Americans.
That is true. And I'm glad that he
brought that up. And
I'm not offended by it.
I don't see that as the Turkish
Government trying to destroy the
reputations of the American people.
I think the American government
does a pretty fine job of that in
the current moment with our
involvement in Yemen right now.
>> Yeah. >> And so, that doesn't
make me insecure about my identity,
my heritage, my anything.
I think that it makes you strong
and courageous to be able
to own up to your past mistakes and
want to do better moving forward.
>> Yeah, look online.
Let's see, if you're targeting
Kirk's in general.
That's obviously not healthy, and
it could be argued to be racist.
If you're talking about
this particular crime and genocide,
yes, it happened.
It clearly happened.
And so there were as they moved
them, there was massacres.
I can go on and on and on, right?
And for Turks, they don't get it.
They think like, we are being
personally targeted and we're
the only people being targeted.
Does it make you feel any better if
I say yes, the Mongols committed
genocide in Baghdad when they came
into the largest city in the world
at the time, and massacred every
man, woman and child that was
800,000 people that they killed.
Yes, that was a genocide.
Yes, what happened to
Native Americans was a genocide.
It doesn't make it any better.
It's not it's
not this is not a haha thing.
It's because you're thinking about
it the wrong way.
It's there's nothing wrong with
accepting what you did wrong in
the past, learning from it and
getting better.
That's not a bad thing.
That's a good thing.