"'In the post-Cold War years the U.S. could just dance around a lot of these little things and never make decisions,' says the Wilson Center’s James Jeffrey, a longtime diplomat. 'But with both Trump and now Biden there is a shift to recognize the reality of a situation, end the debate with a decision, and move on to what’s really important…' "By formally recognizing that the atrocities committed against Armenians by the Ottoman Empire more than a century ago constituted genocide, [...]

"The Biden administration has suddenly abandoned its tough position on a return to the nuclear deal with Iran (the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action, or JCPOA), for a breathtakingly broad interpretation of which post-2016 U.S. sanctions Iran can insist be lifted to include not just, reasonably, sanctions inconsistent with the JCPOA, but also those 'inconsistent with the benefits that Iran expects from the JCPOA.' That benefits language is not consistent with the agreement itself (which allowed continued nonnuclear related U.S. sanctions) [...]

"Though Turkish-US ties are not 'very close' at the moment, six months from now they should improve, according to a former US ambassador to Ankara. "The two countries will maintain extensive ties, James Jeffrey told Anadolu Agency, explaining: 'Right now the relationship is not very close ... I would say, let's look at this relationship in six months, I'm sure it's going to be better…'" Read the full article here: Full Article

"Former U.S. ambassador to Turkey and Iraq James Jeffrey agreed that both countries will eventually find a middle ground since the U.S. needs Turkey as a partner in diplomatic and military platforms to counter China, Russia and Iran, even if it is one of the countries 'whose internal situations do not meet [Biden's] democracy standards…'" Read the full article here: Full Article