Announcement

Collapse
No announcement yet.

Omnibus Bill Maintains military ad parity to Armenia and Azerbaijan

Collapse
X
 
  • Filter
  • Time
  • Show
Clear All
new posts

  • Omnibus Bill Maintains military ad parity to Armenia and Azerbaijan

    Omnibus Bill Maintains military ad parity to Armenia and Azerbaijan,
    increases aid to Karabakh

    armradio.am
    13.03.2009 11:05

    2009 Appropriations bill, signed into law by President Obama earlier
    this week once again maintained military aid parity between Armenia and
    Azerbaijan, and included $48 million in assistance to Armenia and
    another $8 million for Nagorno Karabakh, reported the Armenian National
    Committee of America (ANCA).

    "We would like to thank Chairwoman Lowey, Chairman Leahy, and all the
    supporters of Armenian American concerns on their two panels for
    reaffirming military aid parity, approving a robust aid package for
    Nagorno Karabakh, and doubling the Bush Administration's patently
    insufficient $24 million aid request for Armenia," said Aram Hamparian,
    Executive Director of the ANCA. "We look forward, in the coming year,
    with a new Administration in the White House, to working with our
    Congressional friends to restore U.S. aid to a level commensurate with
    actual needs in Armenia, the many challenges she faces in the region,
    and the scope of the growing U.S.-Armenia relationship."

    The FY09 Armenia appropriation of $48 million is twice the amount
    proposed by the Bush Administration, which consistently sought to
    reduce U.S. support for Armenia, but still $10 million (17%) less than
    the actual FY08 allocation, and $22 million (31%) short of the $70
    million proposed by the Armenian Caucus.

    The Congress, in rejecting the Bush Administration's final attempt to
    break the military aid parity agreement it reached with Congress in
    2001, set Foreign Military Financing levels for both Armenia and
    Azerbaijan at $3 million.

    The $8 million aid figure for Nagorno Karabakh reflects the U.S.
    House's version of the foreign aid bill, crafted under the leadership
    of Rep. Nita Lowey (D-NY), the Chairwoman of the
    Appropriations Subcommittee on State, Foreign Operations and Related
    Programs, and represents a historic high-water mark in direct U.S.
    support for this program.
Working...
X