At the initiative of the Armenian National Committee of America (ANCA), the Armenian community in America will send letters to the office of US President Biden, Secretary of State Blinken, US Ambassador to the United Nations Thomas Greenfield, and head of the US Agency for International Development, Samantha Power. Armenian-Americans urge the President to demand that Azerbaijan immediately open the road to Lachin, punish Aliyev's criminal regime and stop military support to Azerbaijan.
In the letter to the Secretary of State Blinken and the US Ambassador to the United Nations, American Armenians demand to convene an emergency session of the UN Security Council to prevent the threat of genocide against the Armenians of Artsakh (Nagorno-Karabakh) by Azerbaijan, to adopt a resolution to open the Lachin Corridor and to condemn Azerbaijan’s war crimes.
Nora Hovsepian (ANCA-WR Board of Directors Chair) - It is very painful, of course, it is a very hard issue. As American-Armenians, we can only influence the American Government and we already have. The spokesperson of the State Department made a powerful statement. We continue to work. This evening, we will spread an ‘action alert’ so that the people will participate by telephoning the White House, the State Department, USAID, as well as Twitter and social media to make our voice heard.
Azerbaijan’s another step to close the Lachin corridor and endanger the lives of Artsakh citizens was the main topic of the conversation of the participants of the year-end event of ANCA. Community members, state and city officials, with whom the Armenian lobbying structure cooperates, were invited.
Anthony Portantino (California State Senator) - What the Azerbaijanis are doing is reprehensible, an unprovoked act of aggression, a horrific act on the eve of the holidays, leading to a humanitarian crisis. The world must respond. People need roads, infrastructures, to solve basic everyday problems. This is a humanitarian crisis, and the international community must respond, the US must take steps, our State Department must work with its OSCE partners and condemn Azerbaijan. This is an unacceptable aggression against the civilian population.
Chris Holden (California State Assembly Member) - What is happening there is a continuation of Azerbaijan's aggressive attack on the Armenian people, which is aimed at expelling people from their country and changing history by erasing what Armenians have created. The US Government must firmly condemn Azerbaijan.
Kathryn Ann Barger-Leibrich (Member of the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors) - What is happening is terrible. I call on our Government to immediately take steps, to say that we stand by Artsakh and will not tolerate this, this is a repetition of the genocide. All officials, as well as the people, and not only the Armenian Diaspora, must stand up and say that this is unacceptable and that we defend Artsakh.
The representatives of the Armenian community stated that the entire Diaspora should respond to the situation.
Karo Ghazaryan (lawyer) - We must take massive steps to make it clear that the current situation of 120,000 people is incomprehensible. I call on all organizations: church, party, cultural, youth, to take over the organizational work.
Alice Petrossian (Chair of ANCA Western Region Education Committee) - I had a letter two days ago, the only request is to get up, go and fight. How can we sit around the Christmas tree and open presents when our people cannot do the same?
Carmen Ohanian (Armenian Revolutionary Federation Western US Central Committee Chairwoman) - We consider the situation very serious. We are doing everything to get the senators and government officials of our region to release pressure on Azerbaijan and find a quick solution, because this is the issue of the survival of Artsakh Armenians, and also from a human point of view, a humanitarian crisis.
At the end of the annual gathering, ANCA usually summarizes the work done. Last year was important for the lobby organization with federal and local elections. In fact, about 90 percent of the candidates they supported were elected, including the mayor of Los Angeles, Keren Bass. The organization expects that after the war the community will also be as active as it used to be.
