Peters Travels to Armenia, Calls for Increased U.S. Action as Situation in Nagorno-Karabakh Worsens

WASHINGTON, DC – U.S. Senator Gary Peters (MI), Chairman of the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee and member of the Armed Services Committee, recently returned from a congressional delegation to Armenia to meet with key Armenian and international officials and to visit the Armenia-Azerbaijan border to view the blockade of the Lachin corridor that has caused a humanitarian crisis for Armenians in the region.

“I’m deeply concerned about the dire humanitarian situation in Nagorno-Karabakh,” said Senator Peters. “This visit confirmed that we must do more to protect Armenian lives and prevent ethnic cleansing. Increased aid to the Armenian people is critical, and we must stop providing aid to Azerbaijan and impose targeted sanctions on the Aliyev regime. Organizations providing humanitarian aid must be allowed into the region and international observers should be deployed to Nagorno-Karabakh to bear witness to what’s happening on the ground. I will continue to stand with and advocate for the Armenian people and Michigan’s strong Armenian community.”

Peters met with Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan, President of the National Assembly Alen Simonyan, Vice President of the National Assembly Ruben Rubinyan, members of parliament leading the opposition, U.S. Ambassador to Armenia Kristina Kvien, Syunik Governor Robert Ghukasyan, representatives from the EU Mission in Armenia, and residents who have been displaced from Nagorno-Karabakh. He visited the Armenian Genocide Museum-Institute and the Tsitsernakaberd Memorial Complex in Yerevan, where he laid flowers to honor the memory of the 1.5 million Armenians killed in the genocide.

Last week, Peters gave a speech on the Senate floor condemning the Azerbaijani government’s military aggression and violence toward Armenia and called on the U.S. to stand behind the Armenian people. Peters also recently helped introduce bipartisan legislation in the Senate that would provide humanitarian assistance to Armenians in Nagorno-Karabakh, prevent additional U.S. security assistance from going to the Azerbaijani government, authorize foreign military financing for Armenia, develop a strategy to ensure the security of the people of Nagorno-Karabakh, and impose sanctions on the Aliyev regime for its actions against Armenians.

To view or download photos from Peters’ visit, click here.

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