ACA Strongly Opposes Waiver of Section 907

WASHINGTON, D.C. – On June 24, 2022, the State Department transmitted to Congress the Biden Administration’s signed waiver to bypass Section 907 of the FREEDOM Support Act, which bans most U.S. military assistance to the Government of Azerbaijan until it takes demonstrable steps to cease all blockades and other offensive uses of force against Armenia and Nagorno-Karabakh (Artsakh).

The Armenian Council of America strongly opposes waiver of Section 907.

To continue the military aid disparity between Armenia and Azerbaijan, that started with the previous Administration, while the Azerbaijani regime; breaches norms of international law, illegally detains Armenian prisoners of war and civilians as hostages, continues its aggressive actions against Armenia and Artsakh by violating the November 9th trilateral agreement to cease hostilities, seeks to occupy more and more Armenian and Artsakh territory, continues its attempt to ethnically cleanse Armenians and Armenian cultural sites from the Artsakh region, prefers military aggression over peaceful diplomatic resolution and dismisses the Minsk Group’s role (co-chaired by the U.S.) in reaching a peaceful solution to the Artsakh conflict, is objectionable.

Moreover, earlier this year, the U.S. Government Accounting Office (GAO) issued a report stating that the State Department “failed to comply with reporting requirements for reviewing U.S. assistance to the Government of Azerbaijan.” Congress needs advance notice and review of any proposed assistance to Azerbaijan and must ensure accountability regarding the prior military aid disparity.

“It is extremely disappointing that the Biden Administration, which has properly acknowledged the Armenian Genocide and has taken a strong stance on genocide prevention, fails to realize that continuing to disproportionately provide military aid to Azerbaijan, will increase the chances of the Azerbaijani dictatorship to ethnically cleanse the Artsakh region of its indigenous Armenian inhabitants,” stated Armenian Council of America’s Chair Mr. Sevak Khatchadorian. “The Armenian Council of America urges Congress to exercise its oversight to avert another genocide of the Armenian people and uphold U.S. values and integrity.”

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. ACA also aims to strengthen U.S. – Armenia and U.S. – Artsakh ties, the development of programs promoting sustainable economic growth and good governance in Armenia, while promoting the values and responsibilities of global citizenship. For more information, please visit https://www.armeniancouncil.org/ACA/