The Armenian National Congress of America received on Monday a letter from the U.S. Embassy Ankara  in response to a public call for a principled American stand against the attacks upon Garo Paylan, and an official expression of U.S. concern for his safety.

“We are aware that Mr. Paylan was one of a number of parliamentarians from several political parties injured after fighting broke out during a recent debate in parliament on a contentious and politically charged issue,” the Embassy said.

“While the ANCA notes, with satisfaction, that this letter confirms that Garo Paylan is, in fact, on the U.S. government's radar screen, we hold that this response falls far short of specifically calling out the attacks on Mr. Paylan.

Our reading of the text is that it makes general reference to broad-based American commitments to freedom of expression and also cites the existence of official U.S. reporting on discrimination within Turkey against minorities. These are, of course, welcome. But they do not amount to a U.S. condemnation of the attacks and threats against Mr. Paylan, or an expression of concern for his security and safety,” ANCA said in a statement.