Schiff Resolution Calls for U.S. Recognition of Artsakh

ANCA welcomes measure supporting Artsakh, sanctioning Azerbaijan

April 25, 2023

WASHINGTON, DC – Congressional Armenian Caucus Co-Chair Adam Schiff (D-CA) introduced an Armenian National Committee of America (ANCA) backed resolution today calling for U.S. and international recognition of the independence of Artsakh.

“We join with Congressman Schiff in calling for American recognition of Artsakh’s independence,” said ANCA Executive Director Aram Hamparian. “His resolution reinforces what we have all always known, that Artsakh is a very American idea – a free people standing up for liberty against foreign tyranny.”

Rep. Schiff explained the importance of introducing his resolution on April 24th, the international day of commemoration of the Armenian Genocide. “On the occasion of the 108th anniversary of the Armenian Genocide, I have just introduced a resolution to put the United States on record recognizing the independence of Artsakh, and condemning Azerbaijan’s unchecked aggression. I am deeply concerned by the Aliyev regime’s blockade of the Lachin Corridor, and the continuing and deadly attacks on Armenians. The United States must recognize the right of self-determination of the people of Artsakh, the need for remedial secession, and stop sending support to Azerbaijan. Anything less will only further embolden Aliyev in his attempt to annihilate the Armenian people. I encourage all my colleagues to join me in supporting this resolution, reinforcing our commitment to democracy and freedom around the world.”

Rep. Schiff was joined by Congressional Armenian Caucus founding co-Chair Frank Pallone (D-NJ) and Rep. Josh Gottheimer (D-NJ).

Rep. Schiff’s resolution underscores the right to self-determination of Artsakh, the legality of its declaration of independence, and the urgent security needs of its indigenous Armenian population. The measure documents Azerbaijan’s ongoing aggression against both Armenia and Artsakh, condemning Aliyev’s attacks and the brutal 134-day blockade of Artsakh, which has prevented the transfer of food and medicine to Artsakh’s 120,000 strong Armenian population.

The resolution aims to put the U.S. House on the record:

1) Recognizing the independence of the Republic of Artsakh, consistent with the right to self-determination enshrined in various United Nations instruments and the people of Artsakh’s 1991 vote and decision to declare their independence from Azerbaijan;

2) Urging the United States to engage proactively in supporting international recognition of the status of the Republic of Artsakh;

3) Condemning the ongoing blockade of the Lachin Corridor and unprovoked attacks by the Azerbaijani forces on Armenia and Nagorno-Karabakh, and calls for Azerbaijan to immediately cease its blockade and aggressions against Armenia and Artsakh without conditions;

4) Calling for all U.S. foreign and military assistance to Azerbaijan to be immediately ceased pursuant to the section 907 of the Freedom Support Act and for the Administration to make clear to the Government of Azerbaijan that further attacks on Armenia and Artsakh will result in sanctions and other measures;

5) Standing firmly in support of our democratic partner Armenia’s sovereignty and territorial integrity, and against Azerbaijan’s military aggression and blatant violations of international laws and norms; and

6) Supporting the United States and international humanitarian assistance programs to meet the urgent needs of victims of Azerbaijani aggression in both Armenia and Artsakh.

The full text of the resolution is provided below.

Earlier in the day, in a powerful statement marking the 108th anniversary of the Armenian Genocide, Rep. Schiff noted that Turkey and Azerbaijan’s crimes left unpunished have only emboldened President Aliyev to continue his aggression against Armenia and Artsakh. “These are the horrific consequences when aggression and hatred grow unchecked and when Aliyev’s hostility is met with deafening silence, emboldening him to continue, and expand, his unprovoked attacks on the Armenian people. This is why Azerbaijan is emboldened to believe it can annihilate Armenians in their historical homeland. We cannot allow violence and crimes against humanity to go unanswered, whether they occurred one hundred and eight years ago or as recently as this year or even this month,” stated Schiff.

Rep. Schiff reiterated: “The United States must impose sanctions on Azerbaijan, and U.S. support for the warmongers in Baku must stop. The United States must continue to pressure Aliyev to immediately reopen the Lachin Corridor, direct U.S. humanitarian assistance to Artsakh, call for the safe and unconditional release of the remaining Armenian prisoners of war and captured civilians, hold Azerbaijan accountable for the destruction of religious and cultural sites, and support democracy in Armenia and a free, independent Artsakh.”

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RESOLUTION

Recognizing the Republic of Artsakh’s independence and condemning Azerbaijan’s continued aggression against Armenia and Artsakh.

Whereas the right to self-determination is enshrined in several articles of international law to which the United States is a party, including Article I of the UN Inter-national Covenant on Civil and Political Rights which states, “All peoples have the right of self-determination. By virtue of that right they freely determine their political status and freely pursue their economic, social and cultural development;

Whereas the United States has historically supported the right to self-determination for persecuted populations, including but not limited to the cases of Timor-Leste, Kosovo, and South Sudan;

Whereas Armenians have been historically recognized as the indigenous population of Artsakh (Soviet name: Nagorno Karabakh), an integral part of the Armenian homeland and a major center of Armenian cultural life, with Chris-tian holy sites dating back to the 1st century;

Whereas Soviet Azerbaijan engaged in the systematic persecution and discrimination of the region’s indigenous Armenians, which comprised over 80 percent of Artsakh’s population;

Whereas the Republic of Artsakh declared its independence in 1991, consistent with their rights under the Declaration on Principles of International Law concerning Friendly Relations and Cooperation among States (1970) in accordance with the Charter of the United Nations, following Azerbaijan’s deprivation of the fundamental rights of the region’s Armenian population and use of force, including the pogroms of Sumgait, Baku, and Kirovobad that resulted in hundreds of deaths and the forced displacement of over 400,000 Armenians from Azerbaijan;

Whereas the Armenians of Artsakh voted with near-unanimous consent to declare their independence from Azerbaijan by referendum on December 10, 1991;

Whereas Azerbaijan in response launched a full-scale war that saw the widespread perpetration of war crimes and human rights abuses, including the bombing and blockade of cities, the targeting of civilian populations, and the recruitment of foreign terrorists from Chechnya and Afghanistan;

Whereas the First Karabakh War ended in 1994 with a cease-fire brokered by the Russian Federation that ensured Artsakh’s de facto independence from Azerbaijan and initiated a multilateral conflict resolution process under the auspices of the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) ‘‘Minsk Group’’ co-chaired by Russia, the United States, and France;

Whereas the OSCE Minsk Group process determined to ensure a final resolution to the conflict based on the Helsinki Final Act (1975) principles of non-use of force, territorial integrity, and self-determination;

Whereas despite these efforts Azerbaijan’s aggression against Artsakh continued unabated and culminated in its full- scale assault on the territory in September 2020 with the support of Turkey that resulted in thousands of deaths, the capture of territory by force, the displacement of tens of thousands of civilians, the systematic perpetration of war crimes and human rights abuses, and the ongoing detention of hundreds of prisoners of war;

Whereas Azerbaijan continues to demonstrate its inability and unwillingness to ensure the fundamental rights of the region’s Armenian population, seen in remarks by Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev on January 11, 2023, regarding ethnic Armenians in Artsakh stating, ‘‘Whoever does not want to become our citizen, the road is not closed’’, just one of his recent comments that raise concerns about ethnic cleansing and a new genocide in Artsakh;

Whereas Azerbaijani Armed Forces continue to carry out unprovoked attacks on Armenian territory, including opening fire on Armenian soldiers carrying out engineering works in the Tegh Community on April 11, 2023, killing four Armenian soldiers and wounding six;

Whereas, on March 26, 2023, Azerbaijani troops crossed the line of contact to launch an operation to cut off a dirt road that was providing some relief from the blockade of the Lachin Corridor, in violation of the 2020 cease-fire statement;

Whereas, on March 5, 2023, Azerbaijani troops attacked a Nagorno-Karabakh police car, killing three police officers;

Whereas these are only the most recent escalations by Azerbaijan, as in September 2022, Azerbaijan launched its latest, unprovoked assault on sovereign Armenian terri-tory, with intensive shelling and UAV attacks on the villages of Karmir Shuka and Taghavard in Nagorno Karabakh (Artsakh), and the Armenian border cities of Vardenis, Jermuk, Goris, and Tatev reportedly resulting in the deaths of at least 49 soldiers;

Whereas, since December 12, 2022, Azerbaijan has created a humanitarian crisis by blockading the Lachin Corridor, the only road connecting Nagorno-Karabakh to Armenia, depriving some 120,000 innocent civilians of their essential rights, including the right to freedom of movement;

Whereas the humanitarian crisis in Artsakh has grown more dire by the day, with widespread shortages of food, medicine, and other necessities and rolling blackouts, all with the complicity of the Azerbaijani Government;

Whereas despite Azerbaijan’s flagrant violation of Armenia’s sovereignty, territorial integrity, international law, and the November 2020 tripartite statement signed by Armenia, Azerbaijan, and Russia to end the Nagorno- Karabakh War, the Department of State waived section 907 of the Freedom Support Act to provide assistance to Azerbaijan, despite the recent publication of a Government Accountability Office report (22–104619), which confirmed the Department of State and Department of Defense have failed to meet statutory reporting requirements to Congress on the impact of United States assistance on the peace process and the military balance between Armenia and Azerbaijan;

Whereas section 907 of the Freedom Support Act is intended to prevent United States military assistance to Azerbaijan unless the President certifies Azerbaijan ‘‘is taking demonstrable steps to cease all blockades and other offensive uses of force against Armenia and Nagorno- Karabakh’’; and

Whereas peace, stability, and democracy in the Caucasus region are in the political, security, and economic interests of the United States and are matters of international concern: Now, therefore, be it

Resolved, That the House of Representatives—

(1) recognizes the independence of the Republic of Artsakh, consistent with the right to self-determination enshrined in various United Nations instruments and the people of Artsakh’s 1991 vote and decision to declare their independence from Azerbaijan;

(2) urges the United States to engage proactively in supporting international recognition of the status of the Republic of Artsakh;

(3) condemns the ongoing blockade of the Lachin Corridor and unprovoked attacks by the Az-erbaijani forces on Armenia and Nagorno-Karabakh, and calls for Azerbaijan to immediately cease its blockade and aggressions against Armenia and Artsakh without conditions;

(4) calls for all United States foreign and military assistance to Azerbaijan to be immediately ceased pursuant to the section 907 of the Freedom Support Act and for the Administration to make clear to the Government of Azerbaijan that further attacks on Armenia and Artsakh will result in sanctions and other measures;

(5) stands firmly in support of our democratic partner Armenia’s sovereignty and territorial integrity, and against Azerbaijan’s military aggression and blatant violations of international laws and norms; and

(6) supports the United States and international humanitarian assistance programs to meet the urgent needs of victims of Azerbaijani aggression in both Armenia and Artsakh.

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