{"database": "press", "table": "releases", "rows": [["https://www.reed.senate.gov/news/releases/reed-and-menendez-condemn-azerbaijan-military-assault-against-nagorno-karabakh_urge-restrictions-on-us-aid-to-azerbaijan", "Reed & Menendez Condemn Azerbaijan Military Assault Against Nagorno Karabakh & Urge Restrictions on U.S. Aid to Azerbaijan", "2023-09-19", "2023", "2023-09", "Democrat", "Senate", "RI", "Jack Reed", "R000122", "www.reed.senate.gov", "jackreed", "https://www.reed.senate.gov/news/releases", "scraper", "WASHINGTON, DC \u2013 Today, U.S. Senator Jack Reed (D-RI), the Chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee, and U.S. Senator Bob Menendez (D-NJ), the Chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, condemned Azerbaijan\u2019s assault against Nagorno Karabakh and urged the cut off to U.S. assistance to the Aliyev regime.\n\nThe two leading Senators sent a letter to U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken expressing their concerns about the situation and urging the Biden Administration to \u201cimmediately condemn the actions of the Government of Azerbaijan in Nagorno Karabakh and announce that United States will not extend of its waiver of Section 907 of the FREEDOM Support Act.\u201c\n\nIn their letter, the Senators pointed out that \u201cAzerbaijan has denied the people of Nagorno Karabakh have freedom of movement and access to essential goods, food, and medicine. With the Aliyev regime\u2019s resumption of military operations, it now appears that Azerbaijan is intent on removing ethnic Armenians in Nagorno-Karabakh from the region by any means necessary.\u201d\n\nThe Senators are calling on the State Department to fully implement and not waive requirements under Section 907 of the FREEDOM Support Act and halt future U.S. assistance to Azerbaijan, writing: \u201cGiven renewed Azeri aggression and the blockade of the Lachin Corridor, we no longer believe an extension of the waiver of Section 907 can be justified, and we urge you to declare this publicly.\n\n\u201cWe also urge you to strongly condemn Azerbaijan\u2019s military actions and work to ensure humanitarian aid is able to enter the region. Thank you for your attention to this request and we look forward to your prompt reply,\u201d the letter concluded.\n\nFull text of the letter follows:\n\nSeptember 19, 2023\n\nThe Honorable Antony J. Blinken\n\nSecretary of State\n\nU.S. Department of State\n\n2201 C Street, N.W.\n\nWashington, D.C. 20520\n\nDear Secretary Blinken:\n\nWe urge you to immediately condemn the actions of the Government of Azerbaijan in Nagorno Karabakh and announce that United States will not extend of its waiver of Section 907 of the FREEDOM Support Act.\n\nOn September 19, the Government of Azerbaijan resumed hostilities against Nagorno Karabakh, with reports of attacks against civilians and civilian infrastructure. This comes after nine months of blockading the Lachin Corridor, isolating the ethnic Armenians in Nagorno- Karabakh. During this time, Azerbaijan has denied the people of Nagorno Karabakh freedom of movement and access to essential goods, food, and medicine. With the Aliyev regime\u2019s resumption of military operations, it now appears that Azerbaijan is intent on removing ethnic Armenians in Nagorno-Karabakh from the region by any means necessary.\n\nAs you know, Section 907 of the FREEDOM Support Act of 1992 prohibits United States assistance to the Government of Azerbaijan until the President determines and notifies Congress that \u201cthe Government of Azerbaijan is taking demonstrable steps to cease all blockades and other offensive uses of force against Armenia and Nagorno-Karabakh.\u201d In 2002, in the wake of the terrorist attacks on 9/11 and the invasion of Afghanistan, Congress gave the President the authority to waive Section 907 and issue annual extensions for the provision of assistance to the Government of Azerbaijan if the President determines and certifies that certain criteria are met.\n\nFor years, this extension has been granted by Presidents of both parties in support of United States national security and foreign policy priorities and pursuant to federal law. Given renewed Azeri aggression and the blockade of the Lachin Corridor, we no longer believe an extension of the waiver of Section 907 can be justified, and we urge you to declare this publicly.\n\nWe also urge you to strongly condemn Azerbaijan\u2019s military actions and work to ensure humanitarian aid is able to enter the region. Thank you for your attention to this request and we look forward to your prompt reply.\n\nSincerely,", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-08T00:37:48Z"]], "columns": ["url", "title", "date", "year", "month", "party", "chamber", "state", "member_name", "bioguide_id", "domain", "scraper", "source", "date_source", "text", "has_text", "collected_at", "updated_at"], "primary_keys": ["url"], "primary_key_values": ["https://www.reed.senate.gov/news/releases/reed-and-menendez-condemn-azerbaijan-military-assault-against-nagorno-karabakh_urge-restrictions-on-us-aid-to-azerbaijan"], "units": {}, "query_ms": 1.6093449667096138, "source": "dwillis/congress-press", "source_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press", "license": "MIT", "license_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press/blob/main/LICENSE"}