WASHINGTON – A big Republican win in Tuesday’s U.S. congressional elections could jolt U.S. relations with the international community by affecting issues such as arms control, climate change and relations with Turkey.
Foreign policy has not been a factor in the campaign, which has been dominated by economic and other domestic issues. But if Republicans, as expected, win control of the House of Representatives and make gains in the Senate, the impact will be felt beyond U.S. borders.
Though Congress does not run U.S. foreign policy, it can influence it in many ways, and President Barack Obama and the Democratic leadership could find many of their priorities such as the Armenian Genocide Resolution and the backing of the Turkish Armenian Protocols may be stalled or tripped up by Republican lawmakers.
In previous periods of Republican control of the House of Representatives, party leaders have blocked attempts to pass resolutions recognizing the World-War I-era systematic mass killings of Armenians by Ottoman Turks as genocide. Republicans have traditionally supported the NATO ally. But anger in both major parties has risen over Turkish conflict with Israel and ties with Iran.
The third-ranking Republican lawmaker, Rep. Mike Pence, who helps guide party strategy in the House, has said he might reconsider opposition to the Armenian Genocide resolution because of Turkish positions on Israel. Only time will tell how a Republican majority in the House will affect Armenian American issues and relations to Turkey and Armenia.
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