Baku, Azerbaijan, Dec. 23
Trend:
The US Congress refused to allocate funds for 2016 to the separatist regime of Nagorno-Karabakh.
The law on "General payments" for 2016, approved by the Congress and signed by US President Barack Obama came into force December 18.
The law did not include any point, envisaging the allocation of funds to the occupied territories of Azerbaijan, despite the efforts of the Armenian Diaspora and pro-Armenian congressmen.
The US Congress has not included a clause to the law concerning any financial assistance to the occupied territories of Azerbaijan since 2014. This item was included in the law in 1998-2013.
The conflict between the two South Caucasus countries began in 1988 when Armenia made territorial claims against Azerbaijan. As a result of the ensuing war, in 1992 Armenian armed forces occupied 20 percent of Azerbaijan, including the Nagorno-Karabakh region and seven surrounding districts.
The two countries signed a ceasefire agreement in 1994. The co-chairs of the OSCE Minsk Group, Russia, France and the US are currently holding peace negotiations.
Armenia has not yet implemented the UN Security Council's four resolutions on the liberation of the Nagorno-Karabakh and the surrounding regions.