Turkey's ambassador returning, but talks over House genocide resolution not over

Turkey's ambassador is due back in Washington this week after being recalled in a spat over the House Foreign Affairs Committee's approval of the Armenian genocide resolution on March 4.

The House Foreign Affairs Committee approved the contentious resolution, which would recognize the killing of 1.5 million Armenians by the Ottoman Empire in 1915 as genocide, in an extremely close 23-22 vote. Turkey immediately recalled its ambassador, Namık Tan, back to Ankara for consultations.

That touched off a verbal offensive from Ankara, too, with Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan saying that the genocide resolution passed could harm bilateral relations and snapping that the lawmakers on the committee couldn't likely find Armenia.

Erdogan sounded a much different tone on Friday, though, saying not only that the ambassador would return but that Erdogan would attend President Barack Obama's nuclear summit on April 12-13.

Turkey is part of a NATO nuclear-weapons sharing pact with the United States, and has also been seen as a potential intermediary to help bring Iran and its budding nuclear program into international compliance.

“I received an invitation five, six months ago to attend an international event that other countries will also be attending and that serves a good cause, to prevent the use and spreading of nuclear weapons,” Erdogan said Friday, stressing "positive developments" with Washington since the resolution passed committee, according to Hurriyet Daily News. “I will be going to the United States.”

Erdogan made clear that he would bring up his displeasure over the genocide resolution on the sidelines of the nuclear summit.

“The nuclear issue is not the only topic on the agenda. There are many other issues to discuss,” he said. “[Talks in Washington] are important chance and we will make use of this opportunity. We have taken all the required steps up to now.”

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