BEIRUT, LEBANON (11:45 A.M.) – Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan stated during his visit to Washington D.C. earlier this month that Armenians were ‘nomads’ and ‘immigrants’ before achieving statehood in 1991.

“Armenia is a state of yesterday only,” Erdogan began. “They declared their independence and became a state in 1991. Before that, in different locations, they were nomads and immigrants.”

Erdogan’s comments were directed at a U.S. audience following the U.S. House of Representatives vote to recognize the Armenian Genocide of 1915.

The Turkish President vehemently denies that nearly 2 million Armenians, Assyrians, and Greeks were killed by the Ottoman Empire from 1914-1923.

Erdogan has often lashed out in the past against states for commenting on the genocide or showing solidarity with the descendants of victims and survivors.