Expert: The cessation of American aid to Artsakh is the result of the  work of Azerbaijani lobbyists in Washington

ArmInfo.The cessation of American financial assistance to Artsakh is the result of quite active work of Azerbaijani lobbyists in Washington. Head of the  Armenian Center for American Studies Suren Sargsyan expressed a  similar opinion to ArmInfo.

Earlier it became known about the decision of the US National  Security Council to close the financial assistance program aimed at  mine clearance in Artsakh. Each year, the United States allocated  about one and a half million dollars for these purposes. The USA is  the only country in the world providing financial assistance to  Artsakh.

"It is known that Azerbaijan allocated a considerable amount to  lobbyists in the US Security Council. In this light, the decision of  the American administration to stop assisting Artsakh is due, inter  alia, to the activities of Baku. Of course, this is not the only  reason - it is known that the provision of financial assistance to  foreign states is not a priority of the current administration, "he  said.

In this light, the expert emphasized that, first of all, such a  policy of Donald Trump affects countries that do not have strategic  importance in the eyes of the United States. According to him, as  part of this strategy, the United States has already reduced aid to  such countries by 40%. Meanwhile, as of today, Azerbaijan is one of  the priority countries for the United States, as evidenced by  American aid for the military needs of Azerbaijan over the past two  years, which reaches $ 100 million.  According to him, in this light,  the active efforts of the Armenian lobbyists resulted in a letter  from American congressmen, unfortunately, did not lead to a change of  mood in Washington. The participation of the Armenian contingent in  the Russian mission in Syria and some statements about American  financial assistance by Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan also played a  role in this.  It should be noted that last week 75 congressmen from  23 US states sent a letter to the subcommittee on external operations  of the Appropriations Committee of the House of Representatives of  the US Congress with a proposal to provide Armenia with $ 100 million  to support the economy, ensure security and establish the rule of  law. Another $ 1.5 million is proposed by the congressmen to be sent  as assistance to Artsakh: to mine territories and rehabilitate mine  victims. Congressmen also called on the subcommittee to stop  assisting Azerbaijan as a country exposing aggression to Armenia and  Artsakh.