Moderator:    Well thank you so lets open now the floor for discussion please identify yourself when you ask a question and then address it to the particular speaker. Yes.

Person:    Thank you my name is [IB] from the Armenian Assembly of America. Thank you both Juliette and Joshua for your confident analysis and presentations. You started by opening up and saying the inevitable Armenian genocide resolutions, as you know support for the resolution in the house has grow over the last month and we hear that senator Cary, Chairman Kerry has [IB] version any time soon. And with the Armenian issue the protocols that Turkey has thought on ratifying my question is to [IB]. Isn’t it in everyone’s best interests long term US Turkey and Armenia that Turkey acknowledge the genocide and open their border? Otherwise zero problems with zero neighbors will never be successful.

Joshua Walker:    I’ll take a first crack at it given the American component there. Look what happened in 1915 is tragic whatever you want to call it. I happen to personally think that it probably fits the definition of genocide. But there are many Turks that feel the exact same way. But what I don’t like is the political ramifications of what that means. I don’t really feel like I should be dictating to some other country what their history is. And so therefore I don’t think that the Congress or the Senate is a place for that to happen. The fact is for domestic political reasons that’s going to go through. I actually think I mean honestly when I talk to my Turkish friends my feeling is why don’t you get ahead of this admit it. Basically say look what happened in 1950 was a tragedy, lots of people died. If you want to call it a genocide we’re okay with that we are not going to call it a genocide. We have different ways of looking at history that’s fine. And the real hope was the protocols that you talked about. And to me what’s disturbing is not necessarily that the domestic lobbying and this is a big issue for Armenian Americans or all Armenians around the world.

This is an identity issue for anybody from that group. I happen to not be from that group but I’m sympathetic and I understand that perspective. But from a Turkish point of view it seems to me that the stalling of the protocols is an absolute disaster. Because that has given the enemies within the Turkish government an excuse and the nationalists to come back I mean the AKP took a real chance here in terms of trying to engage. Absolutely and the Armenian president got hit pretty hard when he came here the Armenian Americans from my understanding were not happy with the historic steps. But what’s interesting is I don’t think this process is dead I’m not as pessimistic.

When I read the statement from the Armenian side saying that the protocols were dead or that they were in a deep freeze it was very clear. They congratulated President Gul very interesting that they personally called out the president and I think that’s important to notice. I think that when you look at the domestic Turkish polity I think that the president, President Gul has been most out in front here. Everyone seems to not to be as committed to this because he’s the one that deals with the political ramifications. So to me there is room here. The issue is can Turkey on a domestic level consume this? And from my perspective a genocide resolution we know what that’s going to do in terms of the Turks going absolutely berserk over this issue. So to me I mean whether or not that’s facts or truth or whatever if that is. To me it’s like I don’t want to see that happening because it would be disastrous for US Turkey relations. But given the incidence that we’ve had in the last couple of weeks, my sense is many of Turkey’s greatest allies and biggest friends that have kept this from getting where it goes are going to withdraw their support.