Author: Arpi Talalian

AFP: Russia accuses Azerbaijan of violating ceasefire agreement with Armenia

Arpi Talalian
AFP

Russia on Saturday accused Azerbaijan of violating the Moscow-brokered ceasefire that ended the 2020 war with Armenia, by letting its troops cross over the demarcation line. 

“On March 25… a unit of the armed forces of Azerbaijan crossed a line of contact in the district of Shusha, in violation” of the agreement of November 9, 2020, the Russian defence ministry said in a statement. 

It said Russian peacekeepers “are taking measures aimed at preventing escalation… and mutual provocations.” 

Earlier on Saturday, Azerbaijan’s defence ministry said it has taken control of some auxiliary roads in its Armenian-majority breakaway region of Nagorno-Karabakh over which it has fought two wars with arch-foe Armenia.

The ministry said “necessary control measures were implemented by the units of the Azerbaijan Army in order to prevent the use of the dirt roads north of Lachin” for arms supplies from Armenia.

The sole road linking Karabakh to Armenia, the Lachin corridor, has been for months under Azerbaijani blockade, which Yerevan says has led to a humanitarian crisis in the enclave.

Occasional shootouts have broken out along the Armenian-Azerbaijani border and in Karabakh since a Russian-mediated truce ended six-weeks of fighting in autumn 2020.

Last week, Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan warned against a “very high risk of escalation” in Karabakh.

Armenia has also accused Russian peacekeepers of failing to protect ethnic Armenians living in the restive region.

When the Soviet Union collapsed in 1991, ethnic Armenian separatists in Karabakh broke away from Azerbaijan. The ensuing conflict claimed some 30,000 lives.

(AFP)

https://www.france24.com/en/asia-pacific/20230325-russia-accuses-azerbaijan-of-violating-ceasefire-agreement-with-armenia
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Sports: Armenia Fans ‘In A Fighting Mood’ For Euro 2024 Qualifier With Turkey

Arpi Talalian
BARRON’S
  • FROM AFP NEWS
By AFP – Agence France Presse

Armenian football fans gathered on Saturday for the Euro 2024 qualifier match with arch-foe Turkey in Yerevan, years after the two countries first resorted to “football diplomacy” to heal their historical animosity.

Shouting “Armenia, forward!” some two hundred members of the local fan club, Red Eagles, gathered in central Yerevan before kick-off later in the day.

Fans then lit coloured flares, threw firecrackers and beat drums as they  marched towards the Vazgen Sargsyan Republican Stadium.

In the crowd forming outside the 14,000-capacity stadium under the pouring rain, many blew vuvuzelas and waved Armenia’s red-blue-orange national flags.

“We are in a fighting mood, we have come for a victory,” a Red Eagles’ member Karen Antonyan, 36, told AFP.

“The spirit and passion of our players will help them to prevail over the strong and experienced adversary.”

Another fan, 20-year-old Mane Zurabyan said she was confident in her team’s win.

“We will help our team with our crazy energy, the stadium will tremble from our shouts and applause,” she said.

All tickets were sold for the match, but citing security concerns, the governing body of football in Europe, UEFA, has banned Turkish fans from attending the qualifier in Yerevan.

Armenian fans were equally banned from the return fixture to be played in Turkey in September.

Hovik Arustanyan, 46, said he believed his team’s success depended on “whether our footballers will manage to forget politics and concentrate on the game.”

Armenia and Turkey have never established formal diplomatic relations and their shared border has been closed since the 1990s.

Their relationship is strained by World War I-era mass killings of Armenians in the Ottoman Empire, atrocities Yerevan says amount to genocide.

The two countries first played each other in Yerevan in 2008 in attendance of Turkey’s then-president Abdullah Gul.

In 2009 Armenia’s leader Serzh Sarkisian travelled to the Turkish city of Bursa to watch a second game between the two countries.

Commonly referred to as “football diplomacy” the matches marked the beginning of a diplomatic normalisation process, which has yet to bring tangible results.

mkh-im-brw/iwd

U.S. State Department report confirms execution of Armenian soldiers by Azerbaijani troops

Arpi Talalian
Panorama
Armenia –

The U.S. Department of State on Monday released the 2022 Country Reports on Human Rights Practices covering 198 countries and territories around the world, including Armenia.

The report says during last year, there were incidents of violence between Armenia and Azerbaijan that resulted in casualties and detentions.

“There were reports that Azerbaijani forces engaged in unlawful killings, and cruel, inhuman, or degrading treatment of Armenian forces in September. Complaints submitted by Armenia and Azerbaijan to the European Court of Human Rights accusing each other of committing atrocities during the fighting in 2020 and 2016 awaited the court’s ruling. Armenia submitted new complaints regarding the September fighting,” the State Department says.

“Following intensive fighting between Azerbaijani and Armenian forces in mid-September, there were credible reports of unlawful killings involving summary executions of Armenian soldiers in Azerbaijani custody.

“On October 2, Azerbaijani social media accounts circulated a video that Human Rights Watch and the investigative journalism group Bellingcat reported appeared to depict the unlawful summary execution of at least seven Armenian soldiers by troops in Azerbaijani military uniform. Human Rights Watch (HRW) and Bellingcat announced respectively on October 14 and October 20 they had verified the video as having been made in mid-September. HRW described the execution as a “war crime for which there needs to be accountability.”

“Another video circulated by social media users beginning on October 11 appeared to depict three Armenian soldiers in the custody of Azerbaijani soldiers on the premises of a military post. The bodies of all three reportedly were later returned to the Armenian government. The Armenian armed forces and Armenian human rights lawyers separately identified the three soldiers,” reads the report.

‘High probability of escalation’ with Azerbaijan: Armenia PM

Arpi Talalian
Insider Paper
March 14 2023
AFP: Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan on Tuesday warned of a “very high probability” of an escalation on the restive border with Azerbaijan and in the Nagorno-Karabakh region, over which the arch foes fought two wars.

“There is a very high probability of an escalation along Armenia’s border (with Azerbaijan) and in Nagorno-Karabakh,” Pashinyan said in a press conference, accusing Baku of stepping up “aggressive rhetoric” amid the “humanitarian catastrophe” caused by Baku’s blockade of the contested territory.

CSTO leaving Armenia ‘wittingly or unwittingly’, Pashinyan says

Arpi Talalian
Panorama
Armenia – March 14 2023

Armenia has no plans to withdraw from the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO), but the Moscow-led security bloc is abandoning the country, Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan said at a press conference on Tuesday.

“During his trip to Armenia in 2022, the CSTO head told me the CSTO was concerned that Armenia would leave the organization. I said that those concerns were groundless, but the concerns that Armenia had about the CSTO leaving Armenia were justified,” he said. “My assessment is that the CSTO is leaving Armenia wittingly or unwittingly, which worries us.”

Pashinyan said that Armenia would agree to appoint its representative as CSTO deputy secretary general once it was confident that the move would help strengthen the country’s security. He noted that Armenia continued to consistently work with the CSTO.

The CSTO members are Armenia, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Russia and Tajikistan.

Karabakh MFA: Azerbaijan campaign against Defense Army seeks to deprive Artsakh Armenians of self-defense possibility

Arpi Talalian
News.am
Armenia – March 15 2023
17:21, 15.03.2023

The Artsakh (Nagorno-Karabakh) foreign ministry issued a comment on the recent statements made by the assistant to the president of Azerbaijan. The comment reads as follows:

In response to the statements made by Assistant to the President of Azerbaijan, Head of the Foreign Policy Department of the President’s Office Hikmet Hajiyev regarding the Azerbaijan-Karabakh conflict, the negotiation process and a number of other issues, we consider it necessary to state the following:

The statements of the Azerbaijani side that the Azerbaijan-Karabakh conflict has been resolved and is no longer on the international agenda do not correspond to reality. The fact that the Azerbaijan-Karabakh conflict has not been resolved and needs a comprehensive settlement has been repeatedly stated by representatives of both individual States, including the OSCE Minsk Group co-chairing countries, and a number of international organisations.

The fact that the UN Security Council, which bears primary responsibility for maintaining international peace and security, in December 2022 discussed the situation related to the blocking of the Lachin Corridor, refutes the claims of the Azerbaijani side that the conflict is no longer on the international agenda. The desire of official Baku to legitimise the results of the illegal use of force against the Republic of Artsakh and its people and present it as a solution to the Azerbaijan-Karabakh conflict is an attempt to return to the times when military force prevailed over international law.

We are convinced that a comprehensive settlement of the conflict can only be achieved through negotiations, on the basis of the norms and principles of international law. Rejecting the international mechanism of dialogue with official Stepanakert, Azerbaijan is trying to avoid the implementation of possible agreements. Engagement of the international community in the dialogue between Artsakh and Azerbaijan is the only way to guarantee a comprehensive settlement of the conflict.

We strongly reject Azerbaijan’s attempts to distort the essence of the conflict and present it as an internal issue. Against the backdrop of the 90-day blockade of Artsakh, it is obvious that in this way Azerbaijan seeks to create conditions for unhindered ethnic cleansing in Artsakh, excluding the intervention of the international community. This is why Azerbaijan is opposed to the involvement of the international community, including the sending of international missions to Artsakh, so that nothing and no one can prevent the implementation of their criminal plans to ethnically cleanse Artsakh.

At the same time, Azerbaijan continues to make false accusations claiming that Armenia has not fully withdrawn its armed forces and continues to supply arms and ammunition to Artsakh. Such statements do not correspond to reality and are intended to justify the blockade of Artsakh, which has been lasting for more than 90 days.

We emphasise that the Republic of Artsakh has a Defence Army made up of local residents, the presence of which does not contradict any provision of the Trilateral Statement of 9 November 2020, and remains the main guarantee of the security of the people of Artsakh. Azerbaijan’s campaign against the Artsakh Defence Army is due to the fact that Baku seeks to deprive the Artsakh Armenians of the possibility of self-defence and resistance to Azerbaijan’s criminal plans of ethnic cleansing.

Azerbaijan’s claims that the Lachin Corridor is open are false. It should be noted that during the hearings of the International Court of Justice, Azerbaijan had the opportunity to present all its arguments regarding the situation related to the blocking of the Lachin Corridor. However, after a detailed examination of the arguments presented by the parties, the International Court of Justice ordered Azerbaijan to ensure the unimpeded movement along the Lachin Corridor. We recall once again that the decisions of the International Court of Justice are legally binding.

RFE/RL Armenian Report – 03/17/2023

Arpi Talalian 
                                        Friday, 
Russia Laughs Off Pashinian’s Comments On Karabakh, CSTO
RUSSIA - Russian Foreign Ministry's spokeswoman Maria Zakharova attends a 
congress of the International Russophile Movement in Moscow, March 14, 2023.
Russia has reacted scathingly to Prime Minister Nikol Pashinian’s latest 
statements on the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict and Armenia’s increasingly tense 
relationship with the Russian-led Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO).
Pashinian declared on Thursday Russia took on the role of the guarantor of 
Karabakh’s security when it deployed Russian peacekeeping forces there following 
the 2020 Armenian-Azerbaijani war. He said that if the peacekeepers are unable 
to protect the Karabakh Armenians against Azerbaijani military attacks Moscow 
should ask the UN Security Council to “activate additional international 
mechanisms” in Karabakh and the Lachin corridor.
“This can be evaluated with one word: a miraculous ride,” Maria Zakharova, the 
Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman, told reporters when asked to comment on 
Pashinian’s statement.
“That phrase is so inexplicable that I’m not going to explain it. This is some 
incredible equilibristics, you know,” she said, grinning and shrugging her 
shoulders.
Zakharova also disputed Pashinian’s claim about the Russian security guarantee 
for Karabakh, implying that it is at odds with the terms of the Russian-brokered 
ceasefire that stopped the 20202 war.
“The Russian peacekeepers are doing everything they can to prevent an escalation 
and to stabilize the situation on the ground in their zone of responsibility,” 
she said.
“We regard the statements of the Armenian leadership as a continuation of the 
line adopted at the October 2022 [Armenian-Azerbaijani] summit in Prague held 
under aegis of the European Union. So we leave on the conscience of the Armenian 
side, I mean the leadership of Armenia, the attempts to lay responsibility for 
the fate of Nagorno-Karabakh on third countries,” added Zakharova.
Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said earlier that Pashinian effectively 
recognized Azerbaijani sovereignty over Karabakh in a joint statement with 
Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev, French President Emmanuel Macron and EU 
chief Charles Michel issued after that summit. Lavrov said the Armenian leader 
thus all but precluded a different peace deal favored by Moscow. It would 
indefinitely delay an agreement on Karabakh’s status.
Zakharova declined to clarify what Russia will do if Azerbaijani launches a 
military offensive to try to regain full control over Karabakh.
Her scathing reaction underlined growing friction between Russia and Armenia. 
Armenian leaders have repeatedly complained about what they see as a lack of 
Russian support in the conflict with Azerbaijan. They have accused the Russians 
of doing little to get Baku to lift its three-month blockade of Karabakh’s sole 
land link with Armenia.
Yerevan is also unhappy with the Collective Treaty Organization (CSTO), raising 
questions about its continued membership in the Russian-led military alliance. 
Pashinian claimed on Tuesday that it is the CSTO that could “leave Armenia.”
Zakharova laughed off that remark as well, saying that she has trouble 
understanding its meaning.
Yerevan Mayor Resigns
        • Gayane Saribekian
Armenia - Hrachya Sargsian takes over as mayor of Yerevan, December 22, 2021.
Yerevan’s mayor, Hrachya Sargsian, stepped down on Friday after only 15 months 
in office.
Sargsian gave no clear reason for his resignation when he announced it at a 
meeting with other senior officials from the municipal administration.
“Now that the [next] elections of the city council are approaching and there is 
quite good cooperation between the mayor’s office and the government I want to 
announce my resignation,” he said, adding that he will remain part of Armenia’s 
ruling “political team.”
The elections of a new municipal council empowered to appoint the mayor are due 
to be held September. It was not immediately clear whether Prime Minister Nikol 
Pashinian’s Civil Contract party, which controls the current council, engineered 
Sargsian’s resignation to bring forward the vote.
The ruling party announced a year ago that former Deputy Prime Minister Tigran 
Avinian will be its mayoral candidate in 2023. Avinian was appointed as one of 
the city’s five deputy mayors in September.
The Armenian press has been rife with speculation lately that Avinian has low 
approval ratings and is overshadowed by Sargsian despite leading most official 
ceremonies organized by the municipality.
Isabella Abgarian, an independent member of the city council, said that the 
mayor’s resignation is part of government efforts to boost Avinian’s chances in 
the municipal elections.
“I see only one explanation,” she told RFE/RL’s Armenian Service. “They want to 
make sure that the city is put under the exclusive control of Tigran Avinian 
ahead of these elections.”
Abgarian said that despite being installed by the country’s leadership Sargsian 
followed “his own line” and relied on “his own people” during his tenure.
In his farewell remarks, Sargsian said that he supports Avinian’s mayoral bid 
and hopes that Pashinian’s party will win the upcoming polls. But he also 
acknowledged differences within the municipal administration.
The current Yerevan council appointed Sargsian as mayor in December 2021 right 
after ousting his predecessor Hayk Marutian, who fell out with Pashinian 
following the 2020 war in Nagorno-Karabakh. Marutian, who is a former TV 
comedian, has since been coy about his participation in the 2023 polls.
None of Armenia’s major opposition groups have fielded mayoral candidates so far.
Yerevan Again Warns Of ‘Large-Scale’ Azeri Attack
        • Ruzanna Stepanian
A view of Azerbaijani (L) and Armenian army posts on the Armenian-Azerbaijani 
border, June 18, 2021
The Armenian government has again accused Azerbaijan of planning to launch fresh 
military aggression against Armenia and Nagorno-Karabakh, responding to 
Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev’s latest statements.
Speaking during a summit of Turkic nations held in Turkey on Thursday, Aliyev 
said Armenia should be “held responsible” for its refusal to given Azerbaijan an 
exterritorial land corridor to the Nakhichevan exclave.
Aliyev said Yerevan must also allow the return of thousands of Azerbaijanis who 
fled Soviet Armenia following the outbreak of the Karabakh conflict in 1988. He 
described them as the people of “western Azerbaijan” and said they must enjoy 
the kind of “individual rights and security” which Baku is ready to ensure for 
the Karabakh Armenians.
In a statement issued later in the day, the Armenian Foreign Ministry said 
Aliyev’s comments amount to territorial claims to Armenia.
“The bellicose rhetoric of Azerbaijan’s leader is aimed at torpedoing efforts to 
establish stability in the South Caucasus and resorting to the use of 
large-scale force against both the sovereign territory of the Republic of 
Armenia and Nagorno-Karabakh,” it charged.
Yerevan already accused Baku of preparing the ground for another military 
assault on Karabakh following the March 5 shootout near Stepanakert which left 
three Karabakh police officers and two Azerbaijani soldiers dead. It has since 
repeatedly denied Azerbaijani allegations that it illegally ships weapons to 
Karabakh. Baku has threatened to use force to stop the alleged shipments.
The rising tensions in the conflict zone highlight a lack of progress towards 
the signing of an Armenian-Azerbaijani peace treaty sought by Baku.
Prime Minister Nikol Pashinian claimed on Tuesday that the Azerbaijani side is 
rejecting most Armenian proposals regarding the would-be treaty and making more 
demands unacceptable to Yerevan. He said that he will not sign any 
“capitulation” deals with Aliyev.
Aliyev and Pashinian most recently met in Munich on February 18 for talks 
mediated by U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken. Aliyev said after the talks 
that he is largely satisfied with their results.
The U.S. State Department announced later in February that the European Union’s 
top official, Charles Michel, is due to host another Armenian-Azerbaijani summit 
“in the coming days.” There have been indications so far that the summit could 
take place soon.
Thomas de Wall, a veteran British journalist and analyst who has written 
extensively about the Karabakh conflict, suggested on Thursday that Michel is 
unlikely to kick-start the peace process as long as Azerbaijan continues its 
blockade of the Lachin corridor.
“So the threat grows of more violence,” de Wall wrote on Twitter.
Reposted on ANN/Armenian News with permission from RFE/RL
Copyright (c) 2023 Radio Free Europe / Radio Liberty, Inc.
1201 Connecticut Ave., N.W. Washington DC 20036.

The Russian delegation of the Armenian-Russian inter-parliamentary commission arrives in Yerevan

Arpi Talalian

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 18:19,

YERERVAN, MARCH 16, ARMENPRESS. On March 16, the delegation of the Federal Assembly of the Russian Federation led by the Deputy Speaker of the RF FA Federation Council, the Co-Chair of the Inter-Parliamentary Commission Yury Vorobyov arrived in Armenia to take part in the works of the 36th Meeting of the Inter-Parliamentary Commission on Cooperation between the Armenian National Assembly and the RF Federal Assembly, ARMENPRESS was informed from the parliament of Armenia.

At Zvartnots Airport the Vice President of the Nationbal Assembly of Armenia, the Co-Chair of the Inter-Parliamentary Commission between the Armenian National Assembly and RF Federal Assembly Hakob Arshakyan, MPs Babken Tunyan and Aleksey Sandikov met the guests.

While carrying out pruning work in the vineyards, 3 citizens came under irregular fire from Azerbaijani combat positions

Arpi Talalian

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 17:54,

YERERVAN, MARCH 14, ARMENPRESS. On March 15, around 11:00 a.m., the Police of Artsakh received an alarm that 3 citizens, while doing pruning work in the vineyards near the area called “Under Khazazin” in the Amaras valley, came under irregular fire from the adjacent Azerbaijani military positions.

As ARMENPRESS was informed from the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Artsakh, agricultural works were stopped as a result of the shootings. There are no casualties.

The Russian peacekeeping troops were informed about the incident.

ANCA calls on Congress to expand aid to Artsakh, halt military aid to Azerbaijan

Arpi Talalian
 ANCA ANCA News 0

WASHINGTON, DC –Government Affairs Director Tereza Yerimyan outlined the Armenian National Committee of America’s (ANCA) policy priorities in testimony submitted to the US House panel drafting the FY24 foreign aid bill – with a sharp focus on delivering an urgently needed $75 million aid package to Artsakh and holding Azerbaijan accountable for its ongoing Artsakh blockade and increasing aggression.

Yerimyan made the case that, “in the wake of Azerbaijan’s ethnic-cleansing of Artsakh (Nagorno Karabakh), the occupation of Armenia’s sovereign territory, and the ongoing humanitarian blockade of Artsakh, we ask this Subcommittee hold the Aliyev regime accountable by cutting off all US military aid to its armed forces and help meet pressing humanitarian and recovery needs in Artsakh with a robust assistance package.”

Speaking to the need for increased aid to Armenia, Yerimyan prioritized US aid programs aimed at materially strengthening Armenia’s security and sovereignty in the face of escalating Turkish and Azerbaijani threats.

The full text of the ANCA’s testimony – submitted to Chairman Mario Diaz Balart (R-FL) and Ranking Member Barbara Lee (D-CA) of the House Appropriations Subcommittee on State-Foreign Operations – is provided below.

Similar testimony will also be submitted for Senate consideration.

#####

The Armenian-American Community & US Foreign Assistance Policy for Fiscal Year 2024

Presented by Tereza Yerimyan
Government Affairs Director
of the Armenian National Committee of America (ANCA)

For the Subcommittee on State, Foreign Operations, and Related Programs, Committee on Appropriations, of the United States House of Representatives:

Thank you, Chairman Diaz-Balart and Ranking Member Lee, for your strong leadership of this Subcommittee and your strong support for the national and democratic aspirations of the Armenian nation.

In the wake of Azerbaijan’s ethnic-cleansing of Artsakh (Nagorno Karabakh), the occupation of Armenia’s sovereign territory, and the ongoing humanitarian blockade of Artsakh, we ask this Subcommittee hold the Aliyev regime accountable by cutting off all U.S. military aid to its armed forces and help meet pressing humanitarian and recovery needs in Artsakh with a robust assistance package.

Since December 12th, Azerbaijan has blockaded the Lachin Corridor – the only road connecting the Armenians of Artsakh with the Republic of Armenia, and the sole means by which food, fuel, medicine and other essential goods are able to reach the region. Azerbaijan has also undermined the region’s gas and electricity supply – cutting heat amid freezing temperatures. And interruptions to internet access have threatened to cut the region’s capacity to communicate with the outside world. Prior to the blockade, Artsakh regularly received approximately 400 tons a day of supplies, and now only receives a few boxes a day via International Committee of the Red Cross vehicles.

Since early 2022, the ANCA has maintained a presence in the region in order to assess the needs of the local population. Our colleague, a U.S. citizen who is also living under the blockade, reports a dire humanitarian crisis with long-term implications. Vital medication including insulin is in short supply, baby formula and other sources of essential nutrition are inaccessible, and basic sanitary goods are running critically low. The impact the blockade has had on the region’s livestock and agriculture has been profound, threatening the region’s long-term food security.

Almost three years since the end of the 2020 Artsakh War, the region’s indigenous Armenian inhabitants have found no respite.  The blockade has compounded hardship for the region’s vulnerable Armenian population still reeling from the impact of the war. As members of this panel know, to this day over 40,000 of Artsakh’s civilians remain permanently displaced as a result of Azerbaijan’s military conquest of 75% of the region’s territory. Despite having characterized this as an “acute humanitarian crisis,” USAID has so far failed to provide any direct US humanitarian assistance programs within Artsakh. Unexploded ordnance from illegal cluster munitions used by Azerbaijan during the war have contaminated civilian areas. Schools and hospitals and other vital public infrastructure are still in a state of disrepair, after they were deliberately targeted during the war. Armenian cultural heritage and holy sites in areas under Azerbaijan’s control have been systematically desecrated and destroyed. And Azerbaijan continues to hold over 100 Armenian prisoners of war hostage, who face torture and psychological abuse.

Despite the November 2020 ceasefire, Azerbaijan’s policy of aggression has continued unabated – not only in its regular incursions along the line of contact in Artsakh, but in its violation of Armenian sovereignty. The situation continues to deteriorate daily. On Sunday, March 5, 2023 Azerbaijani forces launched an attack on the region killing three Armenian police officers – while Azerbaijan’s President recently issued an ultimatum demanding the integration of Nagorno Karabakh into Azerbaijan, sparking concerns of renewed conflict.

These actions are in line with Azerbaijan’s pattern of aggression against the Christian Armenian population of Artsakh. Since May 2021, Azerbaijan has occupied and established checkpoints within Armenia’s internationally recognized territory. In September 2022, Azerbaijan engaged in a further escalation – shelling towns well within Armenia’s sovereign borders, including areas within 40 miles of the capital Yerevan. During this latest incursion, Azerbaijan perpetrated horrific human rights abuses – including the mutilation and desecration of female soldiers, and the point-blank execution of unarmed Armenian prisoners of war. The videos of these crimes, widely circulated by Azerbaijani soldiers on social media, have been independently verified by international human rights organizations.

Shockingly, Azerbaijan has yet to be held to account. Just the opposite, in fact: Azerbaijan’s oil-rich Aliyev regime continues to receive U.S. military aid under President Biden’s reckless waiver of Section 907 of the FREEDOM Support Act.

Additionally, neither the Trump nor the Biden administration investigated Turkey’s role in Azerbaijan’s aggression, including Ankara’s recruitment of jihadist mercenaries from Syria and Libya to fight against Armenians. Nor has either administration investigated reports of Turkish F-16s having been used to support Azerbaijan’s attacks. Closer to home, we have yet to see either the Pentagon or Department of State look into potential violations of U.S. arms export laws related to the discovery of U.S. parts and technology in Turkish Bayrakdar drones deployed by Azerbaijan against Artsakh.

Our specific requests related to the FY24 State, Foreign Operations, and Related Programs bill fall into four categories:

1) Aid to Artsakh (Nagorno Karabakh):

Through the leadership of this Subcommittee, starting in Fiscal Year 1998, direct U.S. aid to Artsakh has been provided to its peaceful inhabitants in the form of maternal health care, clean drinking water, and life-saving demining by the HALO Trust. In the wake of Azerbaijan’s 2020 attack, and to address the crisis arising from Azerbaijan’s prolonged blockade of the region, this aid program must be meaningfully expanded to meet the humanitarian and recovery needs confronting the families of Artsakh – estimated at well over $250,000,000 – helping them rebuild their lives and resettle in safety upon their indigenous Armenian homeland.

We were encouraged by language in the FY23 Consolidated Appropriations Act mandating the Department of State in consultation with USAID prepare a humanitarian assistance strategy to support those impacted by the Artsakh War. In this spirit we ask the Subcommittee to ensure this strategy is delivered and implemented in order to meet short-term humanitarian needs and support a long-term investment in Artsakh. In this spirit, we request the following language to be included in the body of this Act:

Of the funds appropriated under this heading, not less than $75 million shall be made available for assistance programs the Armenian populated area of Nagorno Karabakh, used to provide humanitarian assistance, rebuilding and resettlement support to the Armenian victims of the Nagorno Karabakh conflict – as well as to address the long-term humanitarian consequences of Azerbaijan’s blockade of the Lachin Corridor. Such assistance will help to meet basic human needs, including maternity healthcare, drinking water programs, as well as food and energy security.

Refugee Relief: $20,000,000
Food Security: $15,000,000
Energy Security: $10,000,000
Education: $10,000,000
Healthcare: $10,000,000
Water/Sanitation: $5,000,000
Rehabilitation: $3,000,000
Demining/UXO: $2,000,000

2) Azerbaijan

We remain troubled that the Administration – even in the wake of Azerbaijan’s attack on Artsakh, and assault on Armenia’s sovereign territory – has chosen, recklessly and irresponsibly, to waive Section 907 of the FREEDOM Support Act. Compounding this misstep, the Administration has – according to the General Accountability Office – officially confirmed that it has demonstrably failed to meet its statutory reporting obligations under this law.

U.S. military aid to Baku – including Section 333 (Capacity Building), Foreign Military Financing, and International Military Education and Training – should not materially add to Baku’s equipment stores, tactical abilities, and offensive capabilities, or free up its state resources for renewed cross-border action against both Artsakh and Armenia. We also remain concerned that in addition to the material impact the provision of military assistance has had on Azerbaijan’s capacity to wage its war of aggression against the Armenian people, U.S. military assistance has been interpreted by the Azerbaijan as a signal that its unabated aggression against Armenia and Artsakh will not be met with any material consequences. The continuation of U.S. military aid will serve to embolden and enable the regime’s misconduct.

In light of Azerbaijan’s blockade of Artsakh and the humanitarian crisis it has created – which the Administration has noted undermines the prospects for peace in the region – the Administration should strictly enforce Section 907. Congress, for its part, should rescind the President’s authority to waive this provision of U.S. law, and enact statutory prohibitions on any new U.S. military or security aid to Azerbaijan.

We request the following language to be included in the body of this Act:

No funds appropriated or otherwise made available under this Act may be provided to the Government of Azerbaijan for U.S. military or security programs.

3) Armenia

Armenia – an ancient Christian nation deeply rooted in Western democratic values – has, despite the crushing economic impact of Turkish and Azerbaijani aggression and blockades, stepped forward as an ally and partner for the United States on a broad array of complex regional challenges. Armenia is a member of NATO’s Partnership for Peace and the Armenian military has been among the highest per capita providers of peacekeepers to U.S.-led deployments, including those in Afghanistan, Iraq, Lebanon, Kosovo, and Mali.

The United States remains uniquely positioned to make important diplomatic advances in the South Caucasus. This is especially true in Armenia, which despite the constant threat of Azerbaijan and Turkey’s authoritarian expansionism, has continued to make strides towards democratic reforms – more so than any other state in the region. At this point, the security of the region’s Armenians, more than any other challenge facing the Armenian people, must be prioritized in our U.S. aid programs. As such, we request the following language to be included in the body of this Act:

Of the funds appropriated by this Act, not less than $100,000,000 shall be made available for assistance for Armenia to support Armenia’s security and sovereignty in the face of regional threats from Turkey and Azerbaijan.

4) Armenian Prisoners of War and Captured Civilians

As part of the November 2020 ceasefire agreement, all parties agreed that the ‘‘exchange of prisoners of war, hostages and other detainees as well as the remains of the fatalities shall be carried out.” However, the Government of Azerbaijan continues to detain over 100 Armenian prisoners of war, hostages, and detained persons, misrepresenting their status in an attempt to justify their continued captivity. We request that the following language be included in the final SFOPs bill:

The Committee remains concerned by Azerbaijan’s failure to immediately return all Armenian prisoners of war and captured civilians and, thus, (2) urges the Secretary of State to engage at all levels with Azerbaijani authorities, including through the OSCE Minsk Group process, to make clear the importance of adhering to their obligations, under the November 9 statement and international law, to immediately release all prisoners of war and captured civilians.

In closing, we would like to underscore, once again, our urgent calls for robust aid to the Armenian population of Artsakh and a statutory prohibition on U.S. security or military aid to Azerbaijan.

The ANCA, as always, thanks you for your leadership and looks forward to working with the Subcommittee to help save Artsakh, defend Armenia’s sovereignty, and strengthen the U.S.-Armenia alliance, and advance American interests and our shared democratic values.

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The Armenian National Committee of America (ANCA) is the largest and most influential Armenian-American grassroots organization. Working in coordination with a network of offices, chapters and supporters throughout the United States and affiliated organizations around the world, the ANCA actively advances the concerns of the Armenian American community on a broad range of issues.