US representatives urge congressional appropriators to allocate $200 million for Artsakh refugees and military aid to Armenia

May 02 2024, 17:39

Politics

Sixty-six US representatives called on US House Appropriations Committee leaders to allocate $200 million in US assistance for Artsakh refugees, expand US military aid to Armenia, suspend all military and security assistance to Azerbaijan, and explore the application of sanctions on Azerbaijani war criminals, the Armenian National Committee of America (ANCA) reports.

The ANCA-backed bipartisan letter was sent to Rep. Mario Diaz-Balart (R-FL), chair of the House Appropriations Subcommittee on Foreign Operation, and Rep. Barbara Lee (D-CA).

Congressional co-signers of the letter expressed specific concern about the Aliyev regime’s intentions to “incite a new war against Armenia.”

The lawmakers criticized the US State Department and international bodies for their failure to hold the Azerbaijani government accountable for human rights abuses.

“It is far past time that the US seriously consider imposing sanctions to make them answer for these violations of international law,” the lawmakers said in a letter.