More than 100 US lawmakers urge end to military aid to Azerbaijan

More than 100 members of the United States Congress, 26 senators and 75 representatives, have urged US Secretary of State Marco Rubio to stop military assistance to Azerbaijan.

The bipartisan, bicameral letter was initiated by Senators Gary Peters and Adam Schiff and Representatives Gus Bilirakis and Frank Pallone. Senate Democratic leader Chuck Schumer also signed on.

In their letter to Rubio, dated 5 October, the lawmakers raised the sentencing of Armenian prisoners held in Azerbaijan, the destruction of Armenian cultural heritage, and the presence of Azerbaijani armed forces on Armenia’s sovereign territory.

They noted that the US administration’s waiver of the restrictions under Section 907 of the Freedom Support Act has not led to the release of Armenian prisoners from Azerbaijan. “It is clear that the decision to waive Section 907 did not prompt Azerbaijan to take steps to release the prisoners of war,” the letter says.

In the lawmakers’ assessment, Azerbaijan’s conduct could jeopardize prospects for a just and lasting peace in the region, and continued circumvention of the restrictions under Section 907 could provoke destabilizing actions.

The letter also addressed the destruction of Armenian churches in Nagorno-Karabakh. The lawmakers specifically mentioned reports of the alleged demolition of two churches in Stepanakert in April 2026. They also noted that Azerbaijani armed forces remain in parts of Armenia’s internationally recognized territory following the incursions of 2021 and 2022.

The lawmakers called on the US administration not to provide military aid to Azerbaijan until Baku takes substantial steps to release Armenian prisoners, protect Armenian cultural heritage and withdraw its troops from Armenia’s sovereign territory.

Section 907 of the Freedom Support Act restricts US assistance to Azerbaijan until it takes practical steps to end the blockade and other acts of aggression against Armenia and Nagorno-Karabakh.