10.09.2023

No food, no water: I saw Azerbaijan's blockade up close. Armenians need our help — now

By: Gary Peters

Source: Detroit Free Press: Senator Peters

Two weeks ago, I stood with Armenian officials on a steep overlook near the border of Azerbaijan. Rugged hills surrounded us on all sides. The barren landscape was covered with harsh boulders and dirt paths, and military outposts dotted the terrain. A lone electrical tower sprang up a few feet away. It was eerily quiet — the only sound came from the gravel beneath our boots.

Through binoculars, we inspected a bridge down the hill. The paved passage and military tents seemed innocuous at first glance. But this nondescript road — the Lachin corridor — has become a weapon of the Azerbaijani government and the focal point of a deepening humanitarian crisis.

That single bridge separates Nagorno-Karabakh — an ethnic Armenian enclave of Azerbaijan — from the rest of the world. Last December, the Azerbaijani government closed it down. Their purpose was clear: to eliminate the ethnic Armenian presence in the region.

They are succeeding.

Azerbaijan’s blockade, the subsequent military campaign, and the dissolution of the self-declared Republic of Nagorno-Karabakh are all part of a plan.

Armenians in Nagorno-Karabakh are facing an existential threat — and we must come to their aid.

Over several months, Azerbaijan’s blockade of the Lachin corridor deprived 120,000 residents of food, water, fuel and other essential supplies. Pregnant women were forced to walk miles to medical clinics. Fuel shortages shut down schools and sidelined emergency vehicles. People got sick from untreated water, then visited pharmacies with empty shelves. Starving citizens lined up for bread in the street, wondering how they would find their family’s next meal.

From our vantage point above the border, we could see a line of close to 20 trucks, filled with the supplies that Armenians so desperately needed, sitting idle on the side of the road. The Azerbaijani government had kept them from entering Nagorno-Karabakh for months.

Our Armenian counterparts made it clear that the crisis is getting worse. Increased military aggression from Azerbaijan has already claimed hundreds of lives. In this chaos, dozens and possibly even hundreds more — mainly civilians – were killed or injured in an explosion at a gas station. They were getting fuel in order to flee — just a few of more than 100,000 people who have left their homes to seek safety in Armenia over the last week. The cause of the explosion is still unknown — but its deadly toll was a result of the Azerbaijani campaign to force Armenians out.

Although these stories were deeply disturbing, so too was the lack of information. Until international observers are allowed unimpeded entry into Nagorno-Karabakh, we will be forced to speculate about the extent of these crimes. But almost the entire population of Nagorno-Karabakh has already fled — they would not do so unless it was their only choice.

We cannot bear witness to these atrocities in silence. We cannot let these stories fall on deaf ears. The Armenians I met did not want to hear just words — they wanted action, and we must come to their aid.

The U.S. must help ensure that the people of Nagorno-Karabakh receive the humanitarian assistance they desperately need. Critically — given the history of this region — we must do everything we can to bring in neutral observers to shine a light on the conditions that the Azerbaijani government has created.

But there must also be consequences for this violence. We must halt all U.S. military assistance to Azerbaijan, and empower President Joe Biden to impose harsh sanctions. I am working to pass legislation that would hold Azerbaijan accountable and prevent taxpayer dollars from financing Azerbaijani aggression. There must be a price paid for these crimes against the Armenian people.

The day after seeing the border, I paid my respects at the memorial to the Armenian Genocide. The monument is a reminder of a devastating history, and the deep resonance of genocide across generations of the Armenian people. But as I lay flowers near the eternal flame, I also saw it as a call to action, urging us to do everything in our power to stem the tide of ethnic violence. If we are to truly heed that call, we must stand firmly beside the Armenian people.

Senator Gary Peters (D-MI) has represented the state of Michigan in the United States Senate since 2014. He currently serves as Chairman of the Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee and a member of the Armed Services Committee.