New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1920-05-24
The President and Armenia

Inc ffe3Ident ana armenia
Paris dispatches say that Presi-
dent Wilson has accepted the invita-
ton Of tho Allied Supreme Council
to fix the boundaries Of the Republic
Of Armenia. What his exact status
as boundary maker is to be doesn't
clearly appear. He Is manifestly not
an arbitrator In the ordinary sense,
since he is not asked to decide be-
tween two parties Of equal standing
engaged in an international dispute.
The Armenian Republic, which
was created after the armistice, was
carved out of former Russian terri
tory in the Caucasus. It lays claim
to the portions Of historical Armenia
included in the former Turkish En-
pire. The Armenians, SO far as they
could, fought ON the Allied side.
Most Of the territory known before
1914 as Armenia proper was con-
quered by the Russians In 1916. 1t
was reoccupied by the Turks in 1918,
and is now claimed by the Nation
alist Turks, under Renal, and by
the Kurds, both anti-Ally belliger.
ents. The Allied Supreme Council
Is disposing of the Turkish inheri-
lance. 1t had great difficulty in de-
Gliding what parts Of Turkish Ar
menia should be added to the extra
Turkish Armenian state. 1t was
glad to shift responsibility Of de-
cision to President Wilson, who, at
Paris, had intimated that the United
States would probably assume a
mandate for the independent Ar
menia which the peace conference
leaders expected to establish.
American relations with Turkey
are in a tangle. We never were at
war with the Sultan's government.
We are legally q neutral so far as
it is concerned. Yet Mr.. Wilson
adopted the theory that we were at
war-at least for the purpose Of
making peace settlements-with al
lies Of Germany against whom we
had never drawn the sword and with
whom we had never even severed
diplomatic relations. United States
commissioners signed a peace treaty
with Bulgaria, a friendly state, rep
resented in Washington by min
lister up to the end Of the war. Ac-
cording to this theory the United
States was also entitled to partici-
pate as fictitious belligerent in the
Turkish peace conference. The
President asserted that right re-
Gently when he wrote letter to the
council complaining about a report
ed feature Of the Turkish settlement.
Yet he has refrained from sending
commissioners to represent the
United States at the peace table.
It is hard to say, therefore, in
what capacity Mr.. Wilson will act
when he draws the Armenian boun-
dairy lines. Is he to do this as an
impartial outsider, whose Judgment
the council will respect because he
Is competent neutral umpire7 Or
will he function as tho chief of a
constructive belligerent power, en-
titled in its own right to a voice In
the settlement Is the President
merely deing the council personal
service or is he representing the
United States a. a peace commits
sioner?
These questions need 60 be cleared
up in order TO understand whether
or not the Presidents assumption of
the task Of delimiting the Armenian
Republic commits this country to
moral and military support of that
feature Of the Turkish partition. If
it is to be Americas contribution to
the Turkish treaty, then formal ad.
hesion to the treaty draft through
American delegates and its submits
sion to the Senate for approval seen,
to be desirable.
Stricken and Striking
A celebrated war Of antiquity was
caused by q quarrel over the shadow
OF a mule. On that event the more
authentic Of Abdera's two claims
to immortality 10 founded, for 1t is,
at least, open to doubt whether