The annual April 24 statement of President Obama on Armenian Genocide Remembrance Day does not deny any of the facts, US Ambassador said.

Ambassador John Heffern was introduced by The Politic, the Yale journal of politics, and commented on Obama’s campaign promise to pronounce the G-word.

“It [statement] does not deny any of the facts. It clearly states that 1.5 million Armenians were massacred or were marshaled to death in the final days of the Ottoman Empire. It refers to these actions as one of the worst atrocities of the 20th century. It acknowledges the facts, and in our view, there is no dispute over the facts,” he said.

Ambassador Heffern noted that the fact how the government characterizes this period is a policy decision, and the U.S.policy is to promote reconciliation between Armenia and Turkey.

“Certainly, Armenia needs that Turkish border open, needs diplomatic relations with its neighbor. It is in a semi-isolated state [that] is very detrimental to the state and to the economy. So U.S. policy is reconciliation between Armenia and Turkey. The President and Secretary of State — Secretaries Clinton and now Kerry — select and use words that they believe will promote that reconciliation, and that is why they have chosen the words they used.”