A bipartisan group of more than 180 US representatives called on Secretary of State Antony Blinken to "elevate human rights" in American policy towards an increasingly undemocratic and anti-American Turkey, the Armenian National Committee of America reported.

“We join with our coalition partners, community activists, and allies across America in welcoming this powerful, bipartisan call for a major course correction in U.S.-Turkey relations,” said ANCA Executive Director Aram Hamparian. “We need to stop outsourcing American policy to Ankara and start holding Ankara accountable for its domestic abuses and its regional aggression.”

In a letter to Congress, lawmakers noted that “President Erdogan and his Justice and Development Party have used their nearly two decades in power to weaken Turkey’s judiciary, install political allies in key military and intelligence positions, crack down on free speech and free press, and wrongfully imprison political opponents, journalists and minorities. Since 2016, more than 80,000 Turkish citizens have been imprisoned or arrested and more than 1,500 nongovernmental organizations have been closed to suppress political opposition.” They went on to cite that “President Erdogan’s government even brought its style to the streets of our nation’s capital, when during Erdogan’s 2017 visit to the United States, Turkish security personnel assaulted peaceful protestors and federal employees.”

ANCA welcomes the bipartisan Congressional letter condemning Erdogan's human rights violations.