ArmInfo.Sixty-five Members of Congress signed a letter to the House Appropriations Committee urging a $250 million aid package for the Armenian people.
The letter also called for language holding President Ilham Aliyev of Azerbaijan accountable for the ethnic cleansing of Armenians in Nagorno-Karabakh (Artsakh), reported the Armenian Assembly of America (Assembly).
The letter requested "not less than $200,000,000 to support victims from Artsakh currently residing in the Republic of Armenia, who were forced to flee their ancestral homeland by Azerbaijan's genocidal campaign in 2023 and have the right to return to their homes under international guarantees."
Additional funding was requested to "enable the Republic of Armenia to protect its territorial integrity, secure its energy independence, support further democratic reforms, and increase cooperation with the United States," in the amount of $30 million for security assistance - including $20 million for Foreign Military Financing and $10 million for International Military Education and Training - as well as $10 million for International Narcotics and Law Enforcement, and $10 million to support democratic reforms in Armenia.
The letter concludes with reporting on Azerbaijan's human rights abuses, and the Aliyev regime's corrupt practices, stating that "The Department of State and other international actors have failed to hold these bad actors accountable, and it is far past time that the U.S. seriously consider imposing sanctions to make them answer for these violations of international law."
To that end, the letter requests that "none of the funds appropriated or otherwise made available under this Act may be provided to the Government of Azerbaijan through U.S. military or security assistance programs."
"The Assembly appreciates the support of Members of Congress who have signed onto this crucial letter," said Assembly Congressional Relations Director Mariam Khaloyan. "It highlights the importance of aid to Armenia and the displaced people of Artsakh, who were driven from their ancestral homeland by Azerbaijan's genocidal campaign."