{"id":2752,"date":"2022-09-13T15:20:09","date_gmt":"2022-09-13T22:20:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.armeniancouncil.org\/ACA\/?p=2752"},"modified":"2022-09-13T16:53:42","modified_gmt":"2022-09-13T23:53:42","slug":"aca-joins-congressional-caucus-on-armenian-issues-in-condemning-azerbaijan-for-latest-military-strikes-against-armenia","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.armeniancouncil.org\/ACA\/aca-joins-congressional-caucus-on-armenian-issues-in-condemning-azerbaijan-for-latest-military-strikes-against-armenia\/","title":{"rendered":"ACA Joins Congressional Caucus on Armenian Issues in Condemning Azerbaijan for Latest Military Strikes Against Armenia"},"content":{"rendered":"<p align=\"JUSTIFY\"><span style=\"color: #000000;\"><span style=\"font-family: Arial, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: large;\"><b>Washington, DC<\/b><\/span><\/span><\/span><span style=\"color: #000000;\"><span style=\"font-family: Arial, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: large;\"> \u2013 As Congress returned to the nation\u2019s capitol on Monday following a month-long long summer recess, Azerbaijan\u2019s military, led by the authoritarian ruler Ilham Aliyev, launched a series of military strikes against Armenian towns and villages along the Azerbaijan border. Shortly after midnight on Monday,\u00a0Azerbaijani forces began firing towards the southern Armenian towns of Goris, Jermuk, Vardenis and Sotk, Armenian Defense Ministry spokesperson Aram Torosyan <\/span><\/span><\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/massispost.com\/2022\/09\/azerbaijani-military-shelling-armenias-southern-border-positions\/\"><span style=\"color: #0000ff;\"><span style=\"font-family: Arial, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: large;\"><u>said<\/u><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/a><span style=\"color: #000000;\"><span style=\"font-family: Arial, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: large;\">.<\/span><\/span><\/span><span style=\"color: #000000;\"><span style=\"font-family: Arial, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: large;\"><br \/>\n<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p align=\"JUSTIFY\"><span style=\"color: #000000;\"><span style=\"font-family: Arial, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: large;\">On Capitol Hill, the Armenian Caucus Co-Chairs Reps. Frank Pallone, Jr. (D-NJ), Gus Bilirakis (R-FL), Jackie Speier (D-CA), David Valadao (R-CA), and Adam Schiff (D-CA) issued a statement on Azerbaijani attacks on Armenia, saying \u201cWe strongly condemn the escalation of hostilities by Azerbaijani forces in southern Armenia. Yet again, President Aliyev is employing the same deadly attacks on sovereign Armenian territory to seek justification for his continued hostility and assaults since the 2020 Nagorno-Karabakh War and to force Armenia to capitulate to his unreasonable territorial demands. World leaders should not stand idly by and make false equivocations between the two sides. There is only one aggressor in this conflict that must be stopped. We urge the Biden Administration to take immediate action to halt Azerbaijan\u2019s aggressions and finally hold Aliyev accountable for his destabilizing actions.\u201d<\/span><\/span><\/span><span style=\"color: #000000;\"><span style=\"font-family: Arial, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: large;\"><br \/>\n<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p align=\"JUSTIFY\"><span style=\"color: #000000;\">\u201c<span style=\"font-family: Arial, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: large;\">The Armenian Council of America (ACA) applauds the Armenian Caucus leadership for the urgent call on the Biden Administration to condemn Azerbaijan\u2019s latest military strikes against America\u2019s democratic ally, Armenia, and take immediate action to hold the Aliyev regime accountable,\u201d stated ACA Board Chairman Sevak Khatchadorian. \u201cACA strongly condemns Azerbaijan\u2019s aggression against Armenia once again and calls on the Biden Administration to take substantive measures aimed at halting the Azerbaijani terror unleashed against peaceful Armenian civilians,\u201d Khatchadorian said.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p align=\"JUSTIFY\"><span style=\"color: #000000;\"><span style=\"font-family: Arial, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: large;\">Hours after the Azeri attacks, the The State Department issued a statement <\/span><\/span><\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.state.gov\/calling-for-the-immediate-cessation-of-hostilities-between-armenia-and-azerbaijan\/\"><span style=\"color: #0000ff;\"><span style=\"font-family: Arial, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: large;\"><u>expressing<\/u><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/a><span style=\"color: #000000;\"><span style=\"font-family: Arial, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: large;\"> \u201cdeep concern\u201d regarding \u201cstrikes against settlements and civilian infrastructure inside Armenia [by Azerbaijan],\u201d said Secretary Antony Blinken, who had just returned to Washington from Kyiv, Ukraine. On Tuesday, Blinken held telephone conversations with the leaders of <\/span><\/span><\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.state.gov\/secretary-blinkens-call-with-azerbaijani-president-aliyev-6\/\"><span style=\"color: #0000ff;\"><span style=\"font-family: Arial, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: large;\"><u>Azerbaijan<\/u><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/a><span style=\"color: #000000;\"><span style=\"font-family: Arial, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: large;\"> and <\/span><\/span><\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.state.gov\/secretary-blinkens-call-with-armenian-prime-minister-pashinyan-7\/\"><span style=\"color: #0000ff;\"><span style=\"font-family: Arial, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: large;\"><u>Armenia<\/u><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/a><span style=\"color: #000000;\"><span style=\"font-family: Arial, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: large;\">. According to State Department Spokesperson Ned Price, \u201cSecretary Blinken urged President Aliyev to cease hostilities and stressed that the United States would push for an immediate halt to fighting and a peace settlement between Armenia and Azerbaijan.\u201d In his call with Armenia\u2019s Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan, Blinken \u201cstressed the need for disengagement of military forces and assured Prime Minister Pashinyan that the United States would push for an immediate halt to fighting and a peace settlement between Armenia and Azerbaijan.\u201d<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p align=\"JUSTIFY\"><span style=\"color: #000000;\"><span style=\"font-family: Arial, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: large;\">On Tuesday, attempts by Russia to broker a cease-fire have <\/span><\/span><\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/massispost.com\/2022\/09\/fighting-continues-as-russian-brokered-ceasefire-attempt-fails-armenia-reports-49-casualties\/\"><span style=\"color: #0000ff;\"><span style=\"font-family: Arial, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: large;\"><u>reportedly<\/u><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/a><span style=\"color: #000000;\"><span style=\"font-family: Arial, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: large;\"> failed when increased hostilities had continued along the border, with Armenia suffering 49 casualties, and the Azerbaijani side not releasing military casualty numbers.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p align=\"JUSTIFY\"><span style=\"color: #000000;\"><span style=\"font-family: Arial, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: large;\">\u201cCongress, and the American people, should no longer tolerate their tax dollars going to a barbaric ruler who uses that money and American training to kill innocent Armenian men, women and children,\u201d Khatchadorian said.<\/span><\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-family: Arial, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: large;\"> \u201c<\/span><\/span><span style=\"color: #000000;\"><span style=\"font-family: Arial, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: large;\">We urge Secretary Blinken to follow through on his words with concrete actions, beginning with an immediate suspension of the waiver he issued earlier this year with respect to Section 907 of the Freedom Support Act. To President Biden, we say to you that innocent Armenian lives are on the line, as is democracy in the South Caucasus. If you\u2019re serious about helping democracies push back against the evil in this world, then we urge you to help Armenia fight back against the growing threat of the genocidal regime in Baku.\u201d<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p align=\"JUSTIFY\"><span style=\"font-family: Arial, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: large;\"><i>As a grassroots organization, ACA is dedicated to working with all political leaders, offering Armenian related news, analysis and resources for policymakers, media, students and activists, advocating issues important to Armenian Americans. The ACA also aims to strengthen U.S. \u2013 Armenia and U.S. \u2013 Artsakh ties, the development of programs promoting sustainable economic growth and good governance in Armenia, while promoting the values and responsibilities of global citizenship.<\/i><\/span><\/span><i><\/i><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Washington, DC \u2013 As Congress returned to the nation\u2019s capitol on Monday following a month-long&#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":2083,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"cybocfi_hide_featured_image":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[2,4],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2752","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news","category-press-releases"],"featured_image_urls":{"full":["https:\/\/www.armeniancouncil.org\/ACA\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/cropped-cropped-ACA__Logo.jpg",512,512,false],"thumbnail":["https:\/\/www.armeniancouncil.org\/ACA\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/cropped-cropped-ACA__Logo-150x150.jpg",150,150,true],"medium":["https:\/\/www.armeniancouncil.org\/ACA\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/cropped-cropped-ACA__Logo-250x250.jpg",250,250,true],"medium_large":["https:\/\/www.armeniancouncil.org\/ACA\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/cropped-cropped-ACA__Logo.jpg",512,512,false],"large":["https:\/\/www.armeniancouncil.org\/ACA\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/cropped-cropped-ACA__Logo-400x400.jpg",400,400,true],"1536x1536":["https:\/\/www.armeniancouncil.org\/ACA\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/cropped-cropped-ACA__Logo.jpg",512,512,false],"2048x2048":["https:\/\/www.armeniancouncil.org\/ACA\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/cropped-cropped-ACA__Logo.jpg",512,512,false],"covernews-slider-full":["https:\/\/www.armeniancouncil.org\/ACA\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/cropped-cropped-ACA__Logo.jpg",512,512,false],"covernews-slider-center":["https:\/\/www.armeniancouncil.org\/ACA\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/cropped-cropped-ACA__Logo-512x500.jpg",512,500,true],"covernews-featured":["https:\/\/www.armeniancouncil.org\/ACA\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/cropped-cropped-ACA__Logo.jpg",512,512,false],"covernews-medium":["https:\/\/www.armeniancouncil.org\/ACA\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/cropped-cropped-ACA__Logo-512x340.jpg",512,340,true],"covernews-medium-square":["https:\/\/www.armeniancouncil.org\/ACA\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/cropped-cropped-ACA__Logo-400x250.jpg",400,250,true],"rpwe-thumbnail":["https:\/\/www.armeniancouncil.org\/ACA\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/cropped-cropped-ACA__Logo-45x45.jpg",45,45,true]},"author_info":{"display_name":"ArmenianCouncil","author_link":"https:\/\/www.armeniancouncil.org\/ACA\/author\/armeniancouncil\/"},"category_info":"<a href=\"https:\/\/www.armeniancouncil.org\/ACA\/category\/news\/\" rel=\"category tag\">News<\/a> <a href=\"https:\/\/www.armeniancouncil.org\/ACA\/category\/press-releases\/\" rel=\"category tag\">Press Releases<\/a>","tag_info":"Press Releases","comment_count":0,"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/www.armeniancouncil.org\/ACA\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/cropped-cropped-ACA__Logo.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.armeniancouncil.org\/ACA\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2752","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.armeniancouncil.org\/ACA\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.armeniancouncil.org\/ACA\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.armeniancouncil.org\/ACA\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.armeniancouncil.org\/ACA\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2752"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/www.armeniancouncil.org\/ACA\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2752\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2756,"href":"https:\/\/www.armeniancouncil.org\/ACA\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2752\/revisions\/2756"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.armeniancouncil.org\/ACA\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2083"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.armeniancouncil.org\/ACA\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2752"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.armeniancouncil.org\/ACA\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2752"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.armeniancouncil.org\/ACA\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2752"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}