US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson wants Artsakh de-mining completed ASAP

Armenian National Committee of America (ANCA) welcomed US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson’s statement U.S. support for completing demining in Artsakh “as quickly and as thoroughly as possible”, ANCA reported.

The ANCA reported that Secretary Tillerson expressed his support in response to Congressional inquiries from Representatives Brad Sherman (D-CA) and David Cicilline (D-RI). His written responses were made public this week.

The Secretary confirmed that over $45 million has been provided to victims of the Nagorno Karabakh conflict.

Secretary Tillerson went on to reaffirm the State Department’s support for Artsakh peace proposals, advanced by House Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman Ed Royce (R-CA) and Ranking Democrat Eliot Engel (D-NY) calling for the non-deployment of snipers, increased border monitors, and the placement of gunfire locator systems.

“We welcome Secretary Tillerson’s support for U.S.-funded HALO Trust humanitarian mine clearance in Artsakh, and are particularly encouraged by his commitment to completing this life-saving work as quickly and as thoroughly as possible,” said Aram Hamparian, Executive Director of the ANCA. “We value the Secretary’s leadership in this area, and appreciate the work of legislators, in both the House and Senate, who have secured continued appropriations for this investment in peace. We also welcome the Secretary’s strong backing for the Royce-Engel proposals and hope that his reaffirmation of U.S. policy will help impress upon the Aliyev regime that it needs to stop obstructing the implementation of these confidence-building measures.”