“If Russia Wants to Help Armenia, It May Not Be Able To,” Says U.S. Congressman

U.S. Congressman Frank Pallone, speaking about the Russia-Ukraine conflict on public television, expressed that the Russians are losing and will not be able to withstand the Ukrainians in the coming months. “If the Russian Federation wants to help Armenia, it may not be able to. They have exhausted themselves in this war to the point where they cannot even help themselves,” he stated.

Addressing the territorial integrity and inviolability of Armenia's borders, Pallone directed a message to the Azerbaijani side: “Remove your troops from the territory you occupied a few weeks ago. Let’s come to peace... Aliyev has always tried to intimidate with threats of invasion and occupation, but the U.S. has made it very clear that it will not tolerate that; it is unacceptable. However, I have no doubt that he will continue the same rhetorical and warlike approaches. Azerbaijan’s desire is to seize Armenian territory; these aspirations are unacceptable, but if Azerbaijan becomes aggressive and launches another attack against Armenia, then Turkey will certainly stand by Azerbaijan,” said Pallone.

Speaking about Artsakh, the Congressman noted that Azerbaijan, as a member of the Peace Agreement, must understand that Artsakh has a status that needs to be recognized and given some form of autonomy to preserve the Armenian culture and its people. “Azerbaijan, Russia, and other post-Soviet states must clearly understand that during the Soviet Union period, there were autonomous regions—not just Nagorno-Karabakh, but many others. They had statuses under the Soviet Constitution; Nagorno-Karabakh was an autonomous region, and that should continue,” Pallone added.