YEREVAN (A.W.)–The U.S. Embassy in Armenia released a statement regarding the disclosure of cables from the U.S. Embassy, noting they “are often preliminary and incomplete expressions of foreign policy, and they should not be seen as having standing on their own or as representing U.S. policy.”
One of the leaked documents includes a letter from U.S. Deputy Secretary of State Negroponte to the Armenian government expressing concern about the reported sale of weapons to Iran: “Notwithstanding the close relationship between our countries, neither the Administration nor the U.S. Congress can overlook this case.” The letter goes on to note that there would be consideration “whether there is a basis for the imposition of U.S. sanctions.”
Below is the full text of the embassy’s statement:
“Regarding recent news reports concerning documents purportedly downloaded from U.S. Defense Department computers, the Department of State does not comment on materials, including classified documents, which may have been leaked.
“Any unauthorized disclosure of classified information by Wikileaks has harmful implications for the lives of identified individuals that are jeopardized, but also for global engagement among and between nations. Given its potential impact, we condemn such unauthorized disclosures and are taking every step to prevent future security breaches.
“While we cannot speak to the authenticity of any documents provided to the press, we can speak to the diplomatic community’s practice of cable writing. Cables reflect the internal day to day analysis and candid assessments that feed the governments’ foreign relations deliberations. These cables are often preliminary and incomplete expressions of foreign policy, and they should not be seen as having standing on their own or as representing U.S. policy.”
ANCA comments
ANCA executive director Aram Hamparian, commenting on the leaked document above, said, “What this cable, and all that has transpired since it was written in 2008, shows is that the U.S. government, having reviewed all the relevant facts, concluded that Yerevan did not merit sanctions—on assistance, on exports, or, for that matter, in any other area.”
Read the complete cable at http://cablegate.wikileaks.org/cable/2008/12/08STATE134490.html.
Turkish efforts to derail genocide recognition
The leaked documents also reveal that Turkey has aggressively used the Turkey-Armenia protocols, particularly the prospect of its ratification, to pressure American leaders against U.S. recognition of the Armenian Genocide and in favor of a pro-Azerbaijani settlement of the Nagorno-Karabagh conflict.
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