Thursday, April 1 2021 15:21

ArmInfo. Members of the Armenian Affairs Committee of the U.S. House of Representatives, after last year's devastating attacks by Turkey and Azerbaijan, are  demanding more than $ 100 million in U.S. aid to Armenia and Artsakh  in fiscal year 2022.

According to the Armenian National Committee of America (ANCA), the  demand was announced when the chairman of the House Appropriations  Subcommittee on International Operations, Barbara Lee, and a member  of the rating agency, Hal Rogers, began to develop a foreign aid bill  for the 2022 fiscal year.  The letter issued on March 31 by the  co-chairs of the Armenian Affairs faction, Frank Pallone and Jackie  Speier, as well as Vice-Chairman Adam Schiff, notes that the requests  for Armenia and Artsakh specified in the appropriations bill for  fiscal year 2022 are key to helping the country to ensure greater  security for the population, strengthen democracy and sustainable  economic development, civil society, help in its response to the  COVID-19 pandemic and, most importantly, to alleviate the ongoing  humanitarian crisis in Artsakh.

In particular, the congressmen demand to provide reliable funding for  direct assistance to the Armenian people of Nagorno-Karabakh in  reconstruction and rehabilitation, including meeting such urgent  details as providing housing, ensuring food security and water  supply, providing sanitary, medical assistance and assistance to  refugees, and restoring infrastructure.

It also indicates the need to provide $ 2 million for conventional  weapons destruction programs in Nagorno-Karabakh, as well as to  allocate $ 100 million for economic, governance, rule of law, and  security assistance to Armenia through the State Department and USAID  accounts.

In conclusion, it is required to suspend all US security assistance  to Azerbaijan until the cessation of all attacks on Armenia and  Artsakh is confirmed.