From the Library of Congress

[Tatevik]

COMMITMENT TO ARMENIA--SENATE JOINT RESOLUTION 178 (Senate - July 19, 1989)

Mr. BUMPERS. Mr. President, I am pleased to join in support of Senate Joint Resolution 178. I do so because I believe it is imperative that the United States support people around the world who hunger for freedom. This resolution reaffirms America's commitment to the people of Armenia, and it sends a signal to Armenians around the world that America will never forget their ongoing struggle.

Last December, the world witnessed the tremendous courage of the Armenian people as they struggled to rebuild their lives after a devastating earthquake left thousands dead and thousands more without homes. As the world watched with horror, the world also witnessed the amazing determination and resilience of the Armenian people. The United States was quick to respond with donations and volunteers, and we were proud to lend our support to help these courageous people.

This resolution, however, focuses on another type of hardship the Armenian people have had to endure. The status of the Nagorno-Karabagh region, an area located to the south of the Caucasus Mountains in Soviet Azerbaijan with Armenians comprising an overwhelming majority of the population, has been of particular concern to Armenians and to all people struggling to establish a more just world. Since 1923 ethnic discrimination and economic oppression have been the fate of the Armenian population of Nagorno-Karabagh. In February of 1988, several Armenians were killed in Sumgait , Azerbaijan, and spokespersons for the popular movement in Armenia were jailed for nearly 6 months before their release on May 31, 1989. As a result of these human rights abuses, large demonstrations and unrest continue in Nagorno-Karabagh to this day.

This resolution encourages Soviet President Gorbachev to engage in meaningful discussions with elected representatives of the people of Nagorno-Karabagh regarding their demands for reunification with the Armenian homeland, and with the leadership of Armenia's prodemocracy movement. By urging bilateral negotiations, I believe that a peaceful compromise is a realistic hope. We must be optimistic that Soviet President Gorbachev is intent on carrying his message of change throughout the entire Soviet Union, and we must continue to demand that the rights of Armenians are protected everywhere.

It is apparent then, Mr. President, that greater freedom has not extended to all corners of the Soviet Union. While glasnost has made some progress in Moscow and elsewhere, I can assure you that the United States will continue to appeal to Soviet President Gorbachev to allow Nagorno-Karabagh to reunite with Soviet Armenia. I believe it is important to Armenians in Nagorno-Karabagh and to Armenians around the world to know that the United States stands behind them as they try to gain a freedom that has so far proven to be elusive.

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[Tatevik]

HON. STENY H. HOYER

in the House of Representatives

TUESDAY, APRIL 25, 1989

• Mr. HOYER. Mr. Speaker, April 24 marked the 74th anniversary of the genocide of the 1.5 million Armenians in the Ottoman Empire. We continue to remember and we will never forget the atrocities committed against the people of Armenia.

• On April 24, hundreds of thousands of Armenians marched in Yerevan to commemorate those who are were systematically killed during and after the First World War. Unfortunately, the marchers were not only mourning and commemorating Armenians killed decades ago. In the last 2 years, both man and nature have combined to take a particularly horrifying toll of the Armenian nation. It is estimated that 25,000 people lost their lives as a result of the earthquake last December, a tragedy that resounded around the world. The hearts of Americans and people everywhere went out to the victims and the survivors, and shared their pain and loss.

• Natural disasters, however, are not in our ability to control. In the case of Armenia, the destruction caused by the earthquake was exacerbated and compounded by the loss of life brought about by people. We all know that for over a year, Armenians have been campaigning for the incorporation of the Nagorno-Karabakh Autonomous Oblast, 75 percent of whose inhabitants are Armenians, from the neighboring republic of Azerbaidjan to Armenia. According to official Soviet statistics, the antagonism between Armenians and Azerbaidjanis over this issue has cost over 90 lives, almost all of them Armenians. The name of Sumgait , where at least scores of Armenians were massacred, will always live in our memory as a symbol of the horrors to which the combination of nationalism and violence can lead.

• In 1989, the Soviet authorities in Moscow decided to put Nagorno-Karabakh under Moscow's special control, rather than leave it under Azerbaidjani rule or give it to Armenia. Tensions have cooled somewhat as a result, but the issue remains a sore point. Without a calm, nonviolent approach, this--and other--nationality problems cannot be successfully addressed in the U.S.S.R.

• It is all the more worrisome, therefore, that the members of the Karabakh Committee, a nonviolent group composed of intellectuals and artists whose primary goal is the peaceful incorporation of Nagorno-Karabakh into Armenia, were arrested in December and January. They have since been moved to Moscow, where they are being held in detention in KGB prisons. They are not allowed to see lawyers or their relatives and the Soviet authorities have released almost no information about their fate and prospects.

• Mr. Speaker, as cochairman for the Commission on Security and Cooperation in Europe, I can assure you that the Commission is carefully following the situation of the Karabakh Committee and in Armenia generally. Along with the Department of State, we are making use of new mechanisms and opportunities afforded by the Vienna concluding document to make known our concerns to the Soviet authorities.

• It has been a difficult and trying year for the Armenian nation. As we commemorate the deaths of those killed in 1915, we hope that wisdom and kindness will prevent any recurrence of man-made disasters.

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[Tatevik]

SETTLEMENT OF DISPUTE OVER NAGORNO-KARABAGH (Senate - November 19, 1989)

Mr. MITCHELL. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Senate proceed to the immediate consideration of Calendar No. 395, Senate Joint Resolution 178.

The PRESIDING OFFICER. The joint resolution will be stated by title.

The legislative clerk read as follows:

A joint resolution (S.J. Res. 178) to express United States support for the aspirations of the people of Soviet Armenia for a peaceful and fair settlement to the dispute over Nagorno-Karabagh.

The PRESIDING OFFICER. Is there objection to the present consideration of the joint resolution?

There being no objection, the Senate proceeded to consider the joint resolution which had been reported from the Committee on Foreign Relations, with an amendment to strike all after the enacting clause, and inserting in lieu thereof other text, as follows:

Whereas the people of the United States have strong historical and cultural ties with the people of Armenia;

Whereas the eighty percent Armenian majority in the region of Nagorno-Karabaugh has continually expressed its desire for self-determination and freedom;

Whereas the current status of the region of Nagorno-Karabagh is a matter of concern and contention for the people of the Armenian and Azerbaijani Soviet Republics;

Whereas the Soviet Government has termed the killings of Armenians on February 28-29, 1988, in Sumgait , Azerbaijan, `pogroms';

Whereas continued discrimination against Karabagh Armenians and the uncertainty about Nagorno-Karabagh have lead to massive demonstrations and to unrest that is continuing to this day in this area;

Whereas the people and government of the Soviet Union initially responded to the outbreak of violence in Nagorno-Karabagh with the positive step of creating an interim Special Administration Committee to stabilize the situation;

Whereas the Administrative Committee has proven ineffective because its mission has been undermined by a number of factors, including organized violence against Armenians, Jews, and other ethnic groups, and blockades of Nagorno-Karabagh, Armenia, and Georgia;

Whereas the three month blockade, theft and damage of goods in transit to Armenia have crippled the work of Armenians, Soviets, Americans, and the entire international community in rebuilding after the tragic December 7, 1988 earthquake in Armenia;

Whereas the Government and people of the United States strengthened their commitment to Armenia by assisting in the immediate relief effort and the overall reconstruction of those areas affected by the earthquake;

Whereas the United States maintains its resolve to assist the Armenians as they rebuild from the earthquake;

Whereas the United States supports the fundamental rights and the aspirations of the people of Nagorno-Karabagh for a peaceful and fair settlement to the dispute over Nagorno-Karabagh: Now therefore be it:

Resolved by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, That it is the sense of the Congress that the United States should--

(1) continue to support and encourage the reconstruction effort in Armenia:

(2) urge Soviet President Gorbachev to restore order, immediately reestablish unrestricted economic and supply routes to the people of Armenia and Nagorno-Karabagh, from attacks and continue a dialog with representatives of Nagorno-Karabagh regarding a peaceful settlement;

(3) promote in its bilateral discussions with the Soviet Union an equitable settlement to the dispute over Nagorno-Karabagh, which fairly reflects the views of the people of the region;

(4) urge in its bilateral discussions with the Soviet Union that an investigation of the violence against the people of Nagorno-Karabagh be conducted, and that those responsible for the killing and bloodshed be identified and prosecuted; and

(5) express the serious concern of the American people about the ongoing violence and unrest which interferes with international relief efforts.

Sec. 2. The Secretary of the Senate shall transmit a copy of this resolution to the Secretary of State.

Amend the title so as to read: `To express United States support for the aspirations of the people of Nagorno-Karabagh for a peaceful and fair settlement to the dispute.'

Mr. PELL. Mr. President, on July 14, I introduced Senate Joint Resolution 178, which deals with the problem of Nagorno-Karabagh, with Senators Simon, Levin, Pressler, Chafee, McCain, and Wilson. The text of the joint resolution was passed by the Senate on July 19 as an amendment to the State Department authorization bill. However, the amendment was dropped in conference with the House as part of an overall agreement to strip off so-called nongermane amendments dealing with foreign policy issues.

On November 17, the Foreign Relations Committee unanimously approved by a voice vote an updated version of Senate Joint Resolution 178. This is the measure now before us. The purpose of this joint resolution is to encourage a peaceful and fair settlement to the dispute between the Soviet republics of Armenia and Azerbaijan over the status of the region of Nagorno-Karabagh. Although some 80 percent of the population of Nagorno-Karabagh is of Armenian descent, the area has been administered by the Republic of Azerbaijan.

The controversy over Nagorno-Karabagh has led to unrest and violence and taken the lives of more than 90 Soviet citizens. The efforts of the Special Administrative Committee, set up by the Soviet Government to stabilize the situation, have been undermined by blockades of Nagorno-Karabagh, Armenia and the Georgian Republic, and by organized violence against Armenians and other ethnic groups. The disruption of the flow of relief and other supplies to Armenia have upset the daily lives of the people of Armenia and hindered Soviet and international efforts to rebuild Armenia after last year's earthquake.

The United States and Armenia have long-standing cultural and historical ties. The United States has a responsibility to encourage an equitable settlement to the problem of Nagorno-Karabagh. The pending resolution seeks to achieve this by expressing, among other things, the sense of the Congress that the United States should urge President Gorbachev to restore order and reestablish unrestricted supply routes to the people of Armenia and Nagorno-Karabagh, and that the United States should promote a fair settlement of the Nagorno-Karabagh controversy in bilateral discussions with the Soviet Union.

Mr. President, the dispute over Nagorno-Karabagh is serious and could well escalate. I believe that it is important that we go on record in support of a peaceful resolution of this crisis. This joint resolution does that. I support its passage.

The PRESIDING OFFICER. The joint resolution is open to further amendment. If there be no further amendment to be proposed, the question is on agreeing to the committee amendment in the nature of a substitute, as amended.

The committee amendment in the nature of a substitute, as amended, was agreed to.

The PRESIDING OFFICER. The question is on the engrossment and third reading of the joint resolution.

The joint resolution was ordered to be engrossed for a third reading, was read the third time, and passed.

The amendment to the preamble was agreed to.

The preamble, as amended, was agreed to.

Mr. MITCHELL. Mr. President, I move to reconsider the vote.

Mr. LEAHY. I move to lay that motion on the table.

The motion to lay on the table was agreed to.

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