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U.S. Denies Aid to Azerbaijan "907" refers to Section 907 of the Freedom Support Act passed by the U.S. Congress in 1992. This law bans direct aid to the Azerbaijan government. The Freedom Support Act was passed to facilitate economic and humanitarian aid to the former republics of the Soviet Union, trusting that such assistance would help stabilize democratic forms of government and foster economic growth. All republics of the former Soviet Union receive this aid, with the exception of Azerbaijan. This restriction with its distorted logic and wording against Azerbaijan was initiated by the Armenian lobby in retaliation to Azerbaijan's cutting off one of the rail routes that carried supplies and fuel to Armenia. At that time, Armenians were aggressively at war with Azerbaijanis who considered it national suicide to provide supplies to neighbors that were carrying out military action against them. Subsequently, Armenians occupied roughly 20 percent of Azerbaijan's territory by military force - land which they still hold [Nagorno-Karabakh and seven regions beyond]. Azerbaijanis consider this piece
of U.S. legislature grossly unfair as it rewards Armenians as
aggressors and treats them, the victims crushed by the economic
burdens of territorial devastation with the social burden of
approximately 1 million refugees and displaced citizens, as the
only nation on earth to which the U.S. denies direct humanitarian
aid. Since enactment of the 907, the U.S. Congress has given
about $1 billion to Armenia in aid, but only $100 million to
Azerbaijan and then, only through non-governmental agencies,
mostly American. Armenia's population is 3.5 million; Azerbaijan's
is 7.5 million. |
