Armenians everywhere should be upset with the present administration if American tax dollars are used to support Azerbaijan and its PM Ilham Aliyev. Please see the article below of actions being taken and do everything you can to put a stop to this madness. It is an egregious insult to Armenians everywhere. BB
WASHINGTON, DC June 2021 – Dozens of US House members have joined Rep. David G. Valadao (R-CA) and fellow Congressional Armenian Caucus leaders in a bipartisan call upon the Biden administration to stop all US military assistance that contributes directly or indirectly to Azerbaijan’s military operations, activities or capabilities, reported the Armenian National Committee of America (ANCA). The May 24th Congressional letter also requests an urgent review of the deeply flawed US waiver authority for Section 907 restrictions on US aid to the corrupt Aliyev (president of Azerbaijan) regime.
“Not a single American tax dollar should be sent to the armed forces of oil-rich Azerbaijan – a country that ethnically cleansed Artsakh, holds Armenians POWs and now occupies territory in the Republic of Armenia,” said Congressman Valadao. “President Biden should immediately withdraw his waiver of Section 907, and if he won’t, Congress should statutorily prevent any and all US arms or aid to the Aliyev regime. The alternative – continuing to ship US military aid to Baku despite its ongoing anti-Armenian aggression – sends Aliyev the green light to escalate his attacks,” concluded Rep. Valadao.
“Armenian Americans from Fresno and across California’s Central Valley join with our community and coalition partners across America in thanking Congressman Valadao and his fellow Co-Chairs of the Armenian Caucus for working to stop all US arms and aid to Azerbaijan’s oil-rich Aliyev regime,” said ANCA executive director Aram Hamparian. “Amid Baku’s escalating aggression, we are especially appreciative of the strong bipartisan leadership of Congressman Valadao, who has traveled to Artsakh, witnessed first-hand the challenges its people face, and championed US aid to this at-risk population.”
Congressional co-signers of the letter to Secretary of State Antony Blinken are asking for the “immediate termination of all US military or security aid to Azerbaijan.” The letter expresses concern about the Biden Administration’s waiver of Section 907 of the FREEDOM Support Act, which restricts U.S. aid to Azerbaijan based on their blockade of and aggression against Armenia and Artsakh. “We are concerned that the State Department did not fully consider Azerbaijan’s lack of progress in ceasing its blockades and other offensive uses of force against Armenia and Nagorno-Karabakh (Artsakh), and instead moved forward with this waiver without detailing serious national security concerns,” stated the letter.
Joining Representative Valadao and Congressional Armenian Caucus leaders Frank Pallone (D-NJ), Gus Bilirakis (R-FL), Jackie Speier (D-CA), and Adam Schiff (D-CA) in cosigning the letter are Representatives: Jake Auchincloss (D-MA), Tony Cardenas (D-CA), Judy Chu (D-CA), David Cicilline (D-RI), Katherine Clark (D-MA), Jim Costa (D-CA), Danny Davis (D-IL), Anna Eshoo (D-CA), Brian Fitzpatrick (R-PA), Jared Huffman (D-CA), Ro Khanna (D-CA), Raja Krishnamoorthi (D-IL), James Langevin (D-RI), Brenda Lawrence (D-MI), Andy Levin (D-MI), Zoe Lofgren (D-CA), James McGovern (D-MA), Grace Napolitano (D-CA), Eleanor Holmes Norton (D-DC), Devin Nunes (R-CA), Ayanna Pressley (D-MA), Linda Sanchez (D-CA), Brad Sherman (D-CA), Abigail Spanberger (D-VA), Haley Stevens (D-MI), Tom Suozzi (D-NY), and Dina Titus (D-NV).
The Congressional letter was delivered amid Azerbaijan’s dramatic escalation of tensions in the South Caucasus, with reports of 1000 Azerbaijani soldiers having invaded Armenia’s Gegharkunik and Syunik provinces. In the wake of ANCA and alarm bells regarding President Aliyev’s latest anti-Armenian aggression, the U.S. State Department issued a statement calling on Azerbaijan to “pull back all forces immediately and cease further provocation.” President Aliyev also continues to illegally imprison and torture over 200 Armenian prisoners of war, with 19 reportedly having been murdered.
The ANCA issued a nationwide call to action encouraging all US House members to support this bipartisan initiative.
