Appropriations Panel backs ANCA push for increased security assistance

WASHINGTON, D.C. – The U.S. House Appropriations Committee has advanced the Fiscal Year (FY) 2027 National Security, Department of State and Related Programs (NSRP) Appropriations Bill with report language directing increased security assistance for Armenia and requiring State Department reporting on the proposed Trump Route for International Peace and Prosperity (TRIPP) — a direct response to advocacy led by the Armenian National Committee of America (ANCA) and the Congressional Armenian Caucus. “The Committee’s action is a meaningful step forward — driven by the grassroots advocacy of Armenian Americans across the country and championed by Congressional Armenian Caucus Founding co-chair Frank Pallone and nearly 50 of his House colleagues,” stated ANCA Executive Director Aram Hamparian. “But our work is far from done. As long as Azerbaijan holds Armenian hostages, occupies sovereign Armenian territory, blocks the right of return for the Armenians it ethnically cleansed from Artsakh and threatens further aggression — there is no justification, none, for a single American taxpayer dollar in military assistance to the Aliyev regime. Congress must finish what this Committee has started: suspend U.S. military aid to Azerbaijan, deliver real humanitarian relief for the Armenians forcibly displaced from Artsakh, and ensure rigorous oversight of any corridor framework that touches Armenian sovereign territory.”  The Committee’s action comes in response to the ANCA-backed Congressional Armenian Caucus Foreign Aid letter, co-signed by over 45 U.S. Representatives and led by Caucus Founding co-chair Frank Pallone (D-NJ). That letter called on the Subcommittee to include $20 million in FMF and $10 million in IMET for Armenia, $100 million in humanitarian assistance for Armenians forcibly displaced from Artsakh, a full prohibition on U.S. military aid to Azerbaijan, Global Magnitsky Act sanctions accountability measures and meaningful Congressional oversight of the TRIPP framework. Rep. Pallone hailed the Committee’s action while pressing for further measures. “I’m proud to have helped secure increased security assistance for Armenia in the State Department’s proposed appropriations for Fiscal Year 2027,” stated Rep. Pallone. “I thank the almost 50 colleagues from the Congressional Caucus on Armenian Issues who joined me in a letter calling for greater investment in U.S.-Armenian cooperation and partnership. But I remain disappointed that the bill does not include additional funding for humanitarian aid for Nagorno-Karabakh’s tragically displaced populace nor additional restrictions on Azerbaijan’s destabilizing behavior. I look forward to working with my colleagues to further address these issues, and to continue building a fruitful relationship with the Republic of Armenia.” Increased security assistance for Armenia The Committee report directs that IMET and FMF funds “be made available above the prior year levels for Armenia,” reflecting the Caucus letter’s warning that additional assistance “would play a critical role in strengthening Armenia’s defensive capabilities and establishing a deterrent against Azerbaijan’s unabated expansionism and threats of aggression and use of force.” The Caucus had cautioned that “the Aliyev regime will seek to take advantage of Russia’s ongoing war in Ukraine and turmoil across the Middle East to press its military advantage against Armenia during this critical stage in negotiations.” The U.S. House Appropriations Committee advanced the FY27 National Security, Department of State and Related Programs Appropriations Bill with report language directing increased security assistance for Armenia and requiring State Department reporting on the proposed TRIPP corridor — responding to advocacy led by the ANCA and the Congressional Armenian Caucus. TRIPP oversight The Committee report directs the Secretary of State to submit, within 90 days of enactment, a report to the appropriate congressional committees on “funding amounts for, and actions taken and authorities used to implement, the proposed Trump Route for International Peace and Prosperity (TRIPP).” The report is to “identify implementing partners, including any providing investment finance, and describe the current or anticipated role of other relevant Federal agencies, such as DFC and the Trade and Development Agency, to help implement construction, development and secure the successful operation of such a corridor.” The reporting requirement responds directly to concerns raised in the Congressional Armenian Caucus letter, which flagged that the TRIPP framework “raises concerns regarding Armenia’s sovereignty and ownership rights over its sovereign territory” and identified “unanswered questions regarding the security of the route, especially assurances that the route will not be used to facilitate military transportation or arms sales between Turkey and Azerbaijan, which would undermine Armenia’s security interests.” The Caucus also expressed concern over “Azerbaijan’s solicitation of foreign investment to engage in the demolition, reconstruction and redevelopment of formerly Armenian-populated areas.” Unfinished business: Azerbaijan accountability and Artsakh humanitarian relief The Committee report does not include the Caucus-requested $100 million in AEECA humanitarian funding for Armenians forcibly displaced from Artsakh, the full prohibition on U.S. military aid to Azerbaijan, or the Global Magnitsky sanctions review the letter called for. The ANCA is mobilizing Armenian Americans to press these priorities as the bill moves through the legislative process — pointing to the Caucus letter’s documentation that Azerbaijan’s 2023 invasion produced “the genocidal ethnic cleansing of the region’s entire indigenous Armenian population” following “a 10-month siege on the region, which saw Azerbaijan deliberately deprive over 120,000 ethnic Armenians access to food, fuel, medicine and other essential goods,” and that Azerbaijan continues to hold Armenian hostages sentenced “following lengthy sham trials, during which Armenian detainees were subject to abuse and torture, and deprived of their fundamental legal rights.”  The full U.S. House of Representatives is expected to take up the FY27 NSRP Appropriations Bill in the coming months. The U.S. Senate will soon begin consideration of its companion measure.  The post Appropriations Panel backs ANCA push for increased security assistance appeared first on The Armenian Weekly.