We Must Take Steps to Ensure Azerbaijan Does Not Gain Military Advantage: US Senator

The newly elected chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, Democrat Ben Cardin, today issued a statement regarding U.S. military assistance to Azerbaijan and Armenia, according to Voice of America.

In the statement, Cardin noted: “Today, U.S. Senator Ben Cardin, Chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, made the following statement regarding the need to support Armenia and reassess U.S. military assistance and cooperation with Azerbaijan in the field of security:

“After nearly a year of horrific blockade, President Aliyev ultimately used military force to assert control over the Nagorno-Karabakh region, effectively eliminating its Armenian population and its rich history. The world continues to grapple with a systematic and intentional campaign of ethnic cleansing by Azerbaijan. We must prioritize support for displaced Armenians and hold Azerbaijan accountable.

Moving forward, we must take steps to ensure that Azerbaijan does not gain a military advantage aimed at territorial conquest. This also includes condemning bellicose rhetoric. The United States must suspend security assistance to Azerbaijan until it has stopped this brutal campaign. The U.S. and the international community must also reaffirm their commitment to documenting war crimes and atrocities, as well as continue to support efforts for the release of prisoners of war, many of whom Azerbaijan continues to detain.

Finally, we must express our solidarity with the Armenian people, especially as Azerbaijan and Turkey focus on the potential opening of the Zangezur corridor. We must increase humanitarian assistance to ethnic Armenians who have fled Nagorno-Karabakh. The U.S. must also continue to support the democratic reforms undertaken by the Armenian leadership in recent years, including efforts to promote transparency, effective governance, and broader economic cooperation with the United States and Western Europe.”