The U.S. Senate confirmed the candidacy of Richard Mills for an ambassador to Armenia, American Foreign Service Association (AFSA) said in a Twitter post.

The acting envoy John Heffern also tweeted to congratulate his successor on the appointment.

Similar to each of his predecessors since former Ambassador John Evans’ historic 2006 stand in support of honest U.S. recognition of the Armenian Genocide, Mills fell short, in his testimony, of properly characterizing the intentional and systematic murder of 1.5 million Armenians by the Ottoman Turkish authorities as Genocide. He did, however, note that “the United States and the world will stand in solidarity with the Armenian people next year to mark the centenary of one of the 20th century’s worst atrocities.

Expressing support for the Turkey-Armenia Protocols, Mills admitted that the process had “stalled,” citing Turkey’s refusal to ratify the document. On the eve of Genocide centennial, Mills placed the onus on Turkey to “engage with Armenia to achieve a full, frank, and just acknowledgement of the facts so that both nations can begin to forge a relationship that is peaceful, productive, and prosperous.”

On the economic front, Mills decried Armenia’s decision to join the Eurasian Customs Union but argued for greater U.S. – Armenia efforts to expand investment.