Deputy national security adviser James F. Jeffrey is getting his
reward for long hours of service at the White House: President Bush
nominated him last week to be U.S. ambassador to Turkey.
Jeffrey has been the deputy chief of mission in Baghdad and the ambassador to
Albania, among a long list of assignments. No word as to when he will
be heading out, but Senate confirmation is not expected to be a
problem since he is a career official.”
Jeffrey previously served as principal deputy assistant secretary of
state for near eastern affairs, where he held the State Department’s
non-nuclear Iran brief and co-chaired the now defunct Iran-Syria
Policy and Operation Group. I interviewed him for a National Journal
story last year before he moved to the NSC, but the piece is
subscription only and not online.
Update: A Hill contact writes of the Jeffrey nomination for US
ambassador to Turkey: “Not surprising. Prior to this Administration,
he was viewed as a Turkey specialist. Served as DCM in Ankara in the
late 1990s.”
——————–
September 18, 2008, 7:01 pm
BUSH ADMINISTRATION’S AMBASSADORIAL NOMINEE FOR TURKEY TO FACE SENATE
FOREIGN RELATIONS PANEL
Ending Denial through Affirmation of the Armenian Genocide, Ending the
Blockade are Key Issues to be Addressed
Washington, DC -The Senate Committee on Foreign Relations, has
scheduled the nomination hearing of Bush’s Ambassadorial Nominee for
Turkey, James F. Jeffrey, for Wednesday, September 24, 2008, reported
the Armenian Assembly of America (Assembly).
“We are hopeful the nomination hearing is not a question and answer
session, which in the past has resulted in equivocating on the
historical fact of the Armenian Genocide and America’s proud record of
humanitarian intervention,” said Assembly Executive Director Bryan
Ardouny. “This represents a critical opportunity for the U.S.
Ambassador to Turkey to go further than Ambassador Yovanovitch and
this time to squarely affirm the Armenian Genocide. The U.S. record of
affirmation is clear as evidenced by the 1951 U.S. filing before the
International Court of Justice. The Armenian Genocide is an historical
fact and Mr. Jeffrey would be well served to follow in the tradition
of Ambassador Henry Morgenthau,” continued Ardouny.
In addition to its campaign of denial and application of article 301
of its penal code, which punishes discussion of the Armenian Genocide,
for more than a decade, Turkey, in coordination with Azerbaijan, has
blockaded Armenia. The Turkish blockade not only costs Armenia
hundreds of millions of dollars, but also undermines the stated U.S.
policy goals of regional cooperation and economic integration in the
South Caucasus Region.
While Turkey’s President Gul did accept the bold invitation by
Armenia’s President Serzh Sargsyan to visit Armenia on the occasion of
a soccer game between the two countries earlier this month, more
concrete steps are needed, including establishing working diplomatic
relations and a process of normalization that removes blockades, opens
borders, restores economic relations, and strives toward the peaceful
resolution of differences and disputes in the region. In fact, the
U.S. Administration has repeatedly called upon Turkey “to restore
economic, political and cultural links with Armenia.”
Jeffrey, a career member of the Senior Foreign Service, currently
serves as Assistant to the President and Deputy National Security
Advisor at the White House. Prior to this, he served as Principal
Deputy Assistant Secretary in the Bureau of Near Eastern Affairs.
Earlier in his career, he served as Deputy Chief of Mission in
Baghdad, United States Ambassador to Albania, and three other
assignments in Turkey. Ambassador Jeffrey received his bachelor’s
degree from Northeastern University and his master’s degree from
Boston University.
Established in 1972, the Armenian Assembly of America is the largest
Washington-based nationwide organization promoting public
understanding and awareness of Armenian issues. The Assembly is a
501(c)(3) tax-exempt membership organization.
###
NR#2008-065
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