With Turkish and Azerbaijan shelling of Artsakh and Armenia intensifying, over 100 U.S. Senate and House members have demanded an end to the aggression, with growing calls to sanction the Erdogan and Aliyev regimes for war crimes committed during the onslaught, now in its third week, reported the Armenian National Committee of America (ANCA).
“The Administration needs to listen to its own intelligence agencies, who know very well that Azerbaijan initiated this attack, and urgently heed the call of Congress, which is demanding – on a bipartisan basis – that sanctions be enforced against both the Erdogan and Aliyev regimes,” stated ANCA Executive Director Aram Hamparian. “The House must pass H.Res.1165 at the next opportunity – sending a powerful message not only to Ankara and Baku, but also to the White House and Treasury Department that U.S. inaction has already cost far too many innocent lives.”
Over 750,000 letters demanding concrete U.S. action have poured into the White House, State Department, and Congressional offices through the ANCA grassroots advocacy network and its signature Rapid Responder program. That has been complemented by tens of thousands of follow up calls to Congressional offices urging legislators to turn condemnation statements into concrete legislative action and sanctions on Turkish and Azerbaijani leaders continuing their attacks.
The over 100 Congressional calls for action include: 1) statements urging the U.S. Treasury Department to impose Global Magnitsky law sanctions on the Aliyev and Erdogan regimes, 2) Congressional letters demanding an end to U.S. military aid to Azerbaijan, and 3) support for a House resolution condemning Turkish and Azerbaijani aggression (H.Res.1165), led by Congresswoman Jackie Speier and co-authored by Representatives Adam Schiff (D-CA), Frank Pallone (D-NJ), Gus Bilirakis (R-FL), Brad Sherman (D-CA), Anna Eshoo (D-CA), David Cicilline (D-RI), and Zoe Lofgren (D-CA), which has over 50 cosponsors and growing.
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Rep. Katherine Clark (D-CA): Azerbaijan’s horrific attacks against #Armenian families in #Artsakh must stop. I’ve joined @RepSpeier’s resolution to condemn Azerbaijan’s unprovoked aggression and tell Turkey’s @RTErdogan to back off. America must stand with Armenia and the people of Artsakh.
Azerbaijan’s unprovoked and ongoing attacks on Artsakh are reprehensible and must be condemned in the strongest possible terms. These acts of aggression have already claimed lives and come just two months after violating its cease-fire with Armenia. The United States should suspend all military aid to Azerbaijan and work with the other members of the Minsk Group to restore peace and stability.”
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