WASHINGTON, DC – Former U.S. Ambassador to Armenia John Marshall Evans, a highly respected Foreign Service officer and international affairs expert, will offer remarks at the upcoming “Armenian Cause 2.0,” reported the Armenian National Committee of America (ANCA).

“We want to thank Ambassador Evans – a principled and proud Foreign Service officer of the highest caliber – for his service to the United States, his unparalleled contribution to the growth of America’s bilateral relationship with Armenia, and for his thoughtful and always reasoned engagement with the Armenian American community on the full range of U.S. foreign policy priorities impacting Armenia and the surrounding region,” said Aram Hamparian, Executive Director of the ANCA. “We look forward, as always, to hearing his views, to benefitting from his keen insights, and to exploring together the future of U.S. diplomacy on issues of shared concern to our community.”

Amb. Evans’ remarks will be part of an array of insider presentations, interactive and hands-on training sessions, and visits to Capitol Hill, planned for Armenian Cause 2.0: Social Networks, Grassroots Power and Smart Advocacy, organized by the ANCA and ANCA Endowment Fund, Inc. The Washington, DC conference will be held June 24-27th at the L’Enfant Plaza Hotel.

The weekend’s educational schedule will be complemented by social and networking programming (all included in the registration fee) that features:

— A welcoming reception with a skyline view of the White House and the monuments on the Washington Mall, generously hosted by the Aramian Family Fund.

— A private guided tour and “Tea on the Terrace” garden reception in the home of President Woodrow Wilson, the signer of the Arbitral Award, and the location of the famous Armenian painting, L’Esperance.

— A catered evening dinner reception at the Embassy of the Republic of Armenia, hosted by the Armenian Ambassador Tatoul Markarian.

— An evening cruise past the monuments along the Potomac River, with drinks and food.

To register for the conference and take advantage of the special ANCA hotel rate of $149/night plus tax, visit https://www.anca.org/conference by May 27, 2011.

The Honorable John Evans: The Ambassador of Truth

Ambassador Evans was recalled by the Bush Administration as U.S. Ambassador to Armenia over his truthful comments recognizing the Armenian Genocide made during a U.S. speaking tour in February of 2005 that included presentations in Boston, New York, New Jersey, San Francisco, Los Angeles, Fresno and Washington, DC.

During his public presentation at the University of California, Berkeley, Evans announced, “I will today call it the Armenian Genocide.” The Ambassador, a Virginia native who studied Russian History at Yale and Columbia universities and Ottoman History at the Kennan Institute, argued that, “we, the U.S. government, owe you, our fellow citizens a more frank and honest way of discussing this problem. Today, as someone who’s studied it… There’s no doubt in my mind what happened.” He explained that he had also consulted with a State Department lawyer who confirmed that the events of 1915 were “genocide by definition.” During a subsequent speech to schoolchildren at the Alex Pilibos Armenian School in Los Angeles, Ambassador Evans cited with pride that 37 U.S. states had recognized the Armenian Genocide.

Following his remarks, Ambassador Evans was singled out by the American Foreign Service Association (AFSA), to receive its “Christian A. Herter Award,” in recognition of his creative thinking and intellectual courage within the Foreign Service. However, soon after the announcement of its decision, AFSA withdrew its award, a move that the Washington Post attributed to pressure from “very serious people from the State Department.”

In addition to serving as U.S. Ambassador to Armenia, Ambassador Evans has served the US foreign service in various capacities in Iran, Czechoslovakia, the former Soviet Union, and with NATO. He is fluent in Russian and several other foreign languages.