Thursday, March 24 2022 12:09

ArmInfo.The Armenian National Committee of America (ANCA) has issued a renewed call to action urging President Biden to enforce Section 907 restrictions and block  all U.S. arms and aid to Azerbaijan, as the Aliyev regime continues  to choke off gas supplies to Artsakh's Armenian population.  

The campaign also calls for $50 million in U.S. aid to Artsakh to help  families rebuild their lives and resettle in safety upon their  indigenous Armenian homeland following the 2020 Turkey/Azerbaijan  attacks.

Thousands of pro-Artsakh advocates have already contacted President  Biden and Vice-President Harris through the ANCA's online portal -  anca.org/crisis - sharing that they "remain deeply troubled that you  have waived Section 907 sanctions against Azerbaijan, and call on you  today to immediately end any and all U.S. military or security aid to  this oil-rich and openly racist regime."  They go on to urge the  White House to condemn Azerbaijan's aggression, hold its leaders  accountable for war crimes, and call upon all Americans to support  the national and democratic aspirations of the Armenian people.   Advocates are also calling the White House comment line - (202)  456-1111 - open from Tuesdays to Thursdays from 11:00am to 3:00pm  EST.

Once again, the ANCA has teamed up with the Armenian Youth Federation  in encouraging broad-based community youth involvement in calling  attention to Artsakh's latest humanitarian crisis.  Armenian Youth  Federation Western Region Central Executive member Hasmik Burushyan,  during a special week-long Washington DC ANCA-AYF collaborative  effort, issued a video appeal, stressing, "Families across Artsakh -  men, women, and children under relentless Azerbaijani attack - need  your help. Today - more than ever before - they need your voice. So,  stand up. Speak out. Take action. Call on President Biden to stop  arming Azerbaijan; To ban all U.S. military aid to this  dictatorship."  Burushyan's video is available here:  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ib056zdesyE.

The call for decisive White House action comes as Azerbaijan  continues to block the natural gas supply from Armenia to Artsakh for  the second time in two weeks, forcing the over 120,000 Armenian  population in the republic to battle sub-zero temperatures with no  heat and rolling black-outs.  Azerbaijan had initially refused to  allow the repair of the pipeline, damaged on March 8th, for over a  week.  Now, Artsakh officials surmise that the Aliyev regime  installed a shut-off valve during the repair process, allowing  Azerbaijani authorities to stop gas flow at will.  The interruption  in gas flow comes just days after news of ongoing Azerbaijani attacks  and intimidation on Artsakh border villages, forcing the evacuation  of women and children from multiple locations.

The ANCA has been joined by a diverse coalition of human rights,  faith-based, and ethnic groups in calling on President Biden to stop  U.S. military aid to Azerbaijan's Aliyev regime.  In a March 15th  letter sent to the White House, the coalition stressed that  "continuing to send U.S. security or military aid to Azerbaijan -  even assistance described as defensive or non-lethal - sends the  dangerous signal to the Aliyev government that the United States is  indifferent or, even worse, supportive of its violations of human  rights.  New military or security aid to Azerbaijan poses a serious  risk of additional harm to civilians. Our nation must never be  complicit in such state-sponsored violence. More broadly, this  assistance undermines your Administration's aim of centering human  rights and democracy in our nation's foreign policy."

Coalition members include: American Friends of Kurdistan, Armenian  National Committee of America, Assyrian Policy Institute, Christian  Solidarity International, Code Pink, Coptic Solidarity, Hellenic  American Leadership Council, Hindu American Foundation, In Defense of  Christians, Israeli-American Civic Action Network, Jewish World  Watch, Middle East Forum, National Council of Churches, and Women for  Weapons Trade Transparency.