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ANCA: Obama Requests $40 million in Aid to Armenia

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  • ANCA: Obama Requests $40 million in Aid to Armenia

    Armenian National Committee of America
    1711 N Street, NW Washington, DC 20036
    Tel. (202) 775-1918
    Fax. (202) 775-5648
    Email. [email protected]
    Internet www.anca.org

    PRESS RELEASE

    February 1, 2010
    Contact: Elizabeth S. Chouldjian
    Tel: (202) 775-1918

    OBAMA REQUESTS $40 MILLION IN AID TO ARMENIA

    -- White House Request a 33% Increase over its FY10 Proposal;
    Maintains Foreign Military Financing Parity to Armenia and
    Azerbaijan

    -- Representatives Pallone, Schiff, Eshoo, Speier, and Lowey
    Played Key Role in Educating Administration about Vital Need for
    Increased Aid to Armenia

    WASHINGTON, DC - President Barack Obama's fiscal year 2011 (FY11)
    budget, released earlier today, calls for $40 million in assistance
    to Armenia -- $10 million more than his FY10 request, but still $1
    million less than the total appropriated by Congress last year,
    reported the Armenian National Committee of America (ANCA).

    The figure, while representing a substantial increase over the
    President's last request, falls just short of the $41 million
    actually appropriated last year by Congress, and far short of the
    $70 million request that was made last year by the Armenian Caucus
    and broadly supported by Armenian American advocacy organizations.

    The President's budget proposes maintaining Foreign Military
    Financing (FMF) assistance parity between Armenia and Azerbaijan,
    requesting $3.5 million for each country. In past years, the White
    House has sought to tilt the military aid balance in support of
    Baku, only to have its efforts rejected by Congress, which has
    consistently ensured balanced FMF figures for the two nations. The
    Administration did not extend the parity principle to International
    Military Training, Education, and Training (IMET), instead seeking
    to provide twice as much for Azerbaijan ($900,000) than Armenia
    ($450,000) in this area.

    The President requested $22.12 million in assistance to Azerbaijan,
    $120,000 more than appropriated by Congress last year. The
    President's overall assistance request for Europe and Eurasia is
    $599,164,000, which represents a reduction of $11,818,000 from the
    previous year.

    "We welcome the decision by the Obama Administration to ask for $10
    million more in economic aid to Armenia this year than he did last
    year, and also his proposal to maintain parity in a key area of
    military aid to Armenia and Azerbaijan," said Aram Hamparian,
    Executive Director of the ANCA. "We want to offer our special
    thanks to Representatives Frank Pallone, Adam Schiff, Anna Eshoo,
    and Jackie Speier - and, of course, Nita Lowey - for their
    energetic efforts in sharing with the Administration how increased
    aid and support for Armenia advances both U.S. interests and
    American values in a strategically important area of the world. We
    look forward, as well, to working with all our Congressional
    friends in building on these numbers and securing the adoption of
    increased aid levels and constructive policy provisions that will
    contribute to the strengthening of the U.S.-Armenia relationship
    and the search for a fair and lasting peace in the region."

    The proposed assistance to Armenia is a significant improvement
    over the FY10 request, which called for a 38% cut in aid to
    Armenia, a 20% increase in aid to Azerbaijan, and the abandonment
    of the longstanding Armenia-Azerbaijan military aid parity
    agreement in favor of Baku. The ANCA led the Armenian American
    community in expressing its concerns to the Administration last
    year, and working with the Congressional Armenian Caucus and
    members of the Senate and House Foreign Appropriations Subcommittee
    on Foreign operations to increase the figures.

    The Foreign Operations Subcommittees of the House and Senate
    Appropriation Committees will now review the President's budget and
    each draft their own versions of the FY11 foreign assistance bill.
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