Schiff Releases Statement on Four Year Anniversary of Azerbaijan Attack on Artsakh
Washington, D.C.— Today, Representative Adam Schiff (D-Calif.), Vice Chair of the Congressional Armenian Caucus, released the following statement commemorating the four year anniversary of Azerbaijan’s unprovoked and deadly assault on Artsakh.
“Four years ago, on September 27, 2020, and over the course of 44 days, the Aliyev regime attacked the Republic of Artsakh, followed by its long-term blockade of the Lachin Corridor in 2022. After more than nine months of the blockade, Azerbaijan launched a military offensive on September 19, 2023, taking full advantage of a people they had systematically starved, and ethnically cleansed Artsakh’s indigenous Armenian population,” said Rep. Schiff.
“We stand with the Armenian people of Artsakh who have overcome the harshest of trials. The United States must suspend aid to the Aliyev regime, impose sanctions on Azerbaijani officials complicit in war crimes and other human rights violations, and call for Azerbaijan’s release of Armenian prisoners of war, hostages, leaders of Artsakh, and other illegally detained persons. Further, we must continue to provide humanitarian assistance to Artsakh refugees and advocate for their right to return to their homes, with a commitment to safeguarding their individual and collective property rights. Finally, we must call attention to the destruction and desecration of Armenian religious and cultural sites by Azerbaijan and urge their protection and preservation,” Schiff continued.
“Despite the struggles the Armenian people have faced and continue to face, it has not broken their faith, determination, and their will to persevere,” Schiff concluded.
Schiff’s 30th Congressional District, which includes the cities of Burbank and Glendale, is home to the largest Armenian diaspora community in the country. In 2019, the U.S. House passed Schiff’s resolution officially recognizing the Armenian Genocide with broad bipartisan support. Ahead of the one-year anniversary of Azerbaijan's coordinated military attack against Artsakh, Schiff introduced his bipartisan Artsakh Revenue Recovery Act of 2024, a critical piece of legislation aimed at holding the government of Azerbaijan accountable for its unprovoked military aggression against the Republic of Artsakh (Nagorno-Karabakh) and providing compensation to Armenians forcibly displaced from the region.
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