March 14, 2007 - 20:03 AMT
Rice warned U.S. House on Armenian Genocide bill
Rice and Gates write joint letter to U.S. House warning on the Armenian bill U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice and Defense Secretary Robert Gates have written a joint letter to the U.S. House of Representatives warning of possible serious consequences to the passage of the Armenian Genocide bill, reports Hurriyet.

According to reports, the letter, which carries the signatures of both Gates and Rice, was sent to House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, Minority Leader John Boehner, and Tom Lantos, the head of the House Foreign Relations Committee.

Rice and Gates warn in their letter that Turkish-American relations could be deeply harmed by the passage of the bill, and that U.S. interests will also be damaged. The Armenian bill was presented to the House at the end of January, and it is still not known exactly when it will stand for debate and possible approval.