Former Republican Senator Jeff Flake, the nominee for the next US ambassador to Turkey, has officially recognized the mass atrocities committed against Armenians by the Ottoman Empire as Genocide, reversing his previous position on the issue.
Flake firmly answered “yes” when Senate Foreign Relations Committee Chairman Bob Menendez asked whether he had changed his position and was ready to “join this body and the administration in reaffirming the Armenian Genocide”:
During his time in both the House of Representatives and the Senate, in 2005, 2007, 2010 and 2014, Flake voted against Congressional resolutions on the Genocide.
In addition, Flake also addressed the Armenian-Azerbaijani conflict, describing Turkey’s role as destabilizing.
“If my nomination is confirmed, I will encourage Turkey to support efforts to find a stable long-term solution to the conflict between Armenia and Azerbaijan, and I will encourage peaceful and diplomatic solutions to the disagreements in the Eastern Mediterranean,” he said.
