April 24, 2021. US President Joe Biden became the first US president to use the term Genocide when referring to the Armenian Genocide, not comparing it to the Holocaust, as President Roland Reagan once did, but accusing Turkey of being a genocidal state.
It was known yet on April 21 that Joe Biden would call a spade a spade on April 24 when Bloomberg, citing White House sources, claimed that the President would use the term ‘genocide’. The same hint was made on the eve of April 24, when the US State Department spokesperson, also using the term ‘Armenian Genocide’, called for one day to be patient, insisting that the main message of official Washington would be published the next day. At the same time, there was an impression that Washington, before slapping Ankara, tries to do everything possible so that the blow is not shocking. Most likely, the American humanity was not appreciated, as yesterday, Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu described Biden’s message as popular and opportunistic.
In fact, it is necessary to clearly understand that Biden’s call was not accidental or, moreover, opportunistic, because three or four months ago it was already obvious that the new Biden administration is still positioning itself, preparing a number significant tightening including in the position on Turkey. It was already felt at the time that Washington was tired of Ankara’s behavior as an unfaithful woman, and that in April-May the United States would begin trying to bring Turkey back to the real world.
This means that the first step may be followed by a series of sanctions against Turkey, some of which may be in the interests of official Yerevan. In particular, it refers to the issue of Turkey’s direct participation in the Second Artsakh (Nagorno-Karabakh) War, which, of course, can become one of the tools of Washington to put pressure on Ankara. Especially since the US special services have already completed their investigation into the evidence of Turkey’s involvement in the war, the investigation has reportedly already been sent to both the White House and the legislature.
In other words, if the Armenian side is able to concentrate its forces and cooperate with the Armenian lobbying organizations in the Diaspora, it is possible that the Second Artsakh War will become part of the US foreign policy agenda. And if we take into account that the Minsk Group, in which the United States is one of the three co-chairs, has recently become more active, it is not ruled out that in parallel with Turkey, it will also put pressure on Baku. It is noteworthy that Washington can have the support of Moscow and Paris in making such pressure.