Our Lobbyists Demand $200 Million in Support for Armenia and Artsakh in Washington, Analyst Says

Surén Sargsyan, director of the Armenian Center for American Studies, addressed the shortcomings of Armenian diplomacy on his Facebook page. "Can you imagine that Armenia has no calculations of how much our economy has suffered due to anti-Iranian and anti-Russian sanctions?" he wrote.

Sargsyan stated that this calculation should be made and presented to American partners at every appropriate opportunity—not as some demand but simply as an additional argument for why our lobbyists are requesting $200 million in support for Armenia and Artsakh in Washington.

"This is how work should be coordinated in Washington, so that lobbying and diplomacy can 'connect' and score a 'goal' without violating the written and unwritten rules of the host country," he expressed.

Sargsyan recalled examples from the 1990s of lobbying and embassy collaboration when, despite serious internal disagreements, cooperation was achievable in Washington.