[JURIST] US Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi said Sunday that the House will vote on a resolution [HR 106 materials; text] labeling as genocide the World War I-era killings of over one million Armenians by Turkish soldiers [ANCA backgrounder; Turkish DC Embassy backgrounder] despite complaints from Turkey. In a Sunday interview on ABC News' This Week, Pelosi said that the resolution will go forward for a vote on the House floor and noted that it is in line with what the US has always unofficially said about the killings. US Senate Majority Leader Steny Hoyer also said Sunday that he expects the resolution to pass [Fox News Sunday transcript; Bloomberg report] before Congress breaks for recess for the year.

The resolution was approved by the House Foreign Relations Committee [JURIST report] last week and now goes to a vote before full House. On Sunday, Turkish General and commander of the Turkish Armed Forces Yasar Buyukanit [official profile] warned that US-Turkish ties will be permanently damaged if the House passes the resolution [JURIST report]. Last Wednesday, US President George W. Bush expressed disappointment [press briefing] over the committee decision and urged the full House not to approve the resolution out of concern that it could alienate Turkey, a key US supporter in the war on terror. The Washington Times has more.