The Turkish government has summoned the US ambassador to Ankara, responding to a US House resolution. The parliamentary chamber in Washington on Tuesday had officially classified the massacre of Armenians in the First World War as genocide, the corresponding resolution was adopted by a clear majority of 405 to 11 votes.
It was the first time that the US Congress called the massacres of 1915-1917 a genocide. Representatives of the Turkish Foreign Ministry said that US diplomat David Satterfield had been summoned for a "resolution that lacks any historical or legal basis."
Another reason for the measure is the approval of a bill by the US House of Representatives, which provides for sanctions against Turkey because of the invasion of Syria. US President Donald Trump had recently announced that he wanted to lift all sanctions against Turkey because they announced a permanent ceasefire.
Bundestag classified massacres already in 2016 as genocide
Previously, Turkey, which rejects the term genocide, had reacted furiously to the passing of the resolution. The Turkish Foreign Ministry spoke of a "meaningless political move" aimed at the "Armenian lobby and anti-Turkey groups". The House decision endangers relations between Turkey and the US in times of great danger to international and regional security.
At the same time, Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu assumed that the move was to be understood as a response to the Turkish advance in Syria.
In 2001, France was the first major European country to classify the massacres of Armenians in the Ottoman Empire as genocide. The Bundestag in Berlin followed in June 2016. This triggered a serious diplomatic crisis with Turkey.