On Eve of Armenian Genocide Remembrance, Congress Warns of Dangers of Trump’s Armenia-Azerbaijan Peace Plan

Senator Adam Schiff (D-CA) addresses a packed room of Armenian Americans and allies at the April 15th Capitol Hill Armenian Genocide Commemoration

ANCA Policy Director Alex Galitsky, Dr. Robert Krikorian, and Karnig Kerkonian convene the "Peace Without Justice in the South Caucasus" Congressional staff briefing

Bipartisan Capitol Hill Events Demand Hostage Release, Artsakh Right of Return, and Accountability for Azerbaijan's Ongoing Crimes

WASHINGTON, DC, UNITED STATES, April 23, 2026 /EINPresswire.com/ -- A bipartisan gathering of Congressional leaders, policy experts, and Armenian Americans convened on Capitol Hill to deliver a unified message: the current Armenia-Azerbaijan peace process fails to address the foundational demands of justice, security, and sovereignty — and without accountability, sets the stage for renewed aggression. The events were reported by the Armenian National Committee of America (ANCA), as the world marks the international day of commemoration of the Armenian Genocide on April 24th.

The day's proceedings on April 15th centered on two programs: a Congressional staff briefing titled "Peace Without Justice in the South Caucasus," and the annual Capitol Hill Armenian Genocide Commemoration, co-hosted by the ANCA and the Armenian Assembly of America in cooperation with the Congressional Armenian Caucus. Together, they made clear that no peace agreement can be considered credible while Armenian hostages remain in Azerbaijani detention, more than 150,000 Artsakh Armenians are denied their right of return, and Azerbaijan continues to occupy sovereign Armenian territory — concerns the ANCA says remain unresolved in the Armenia-Azerbaijan peace agreement signed at the White House on August 8, 2025.

Congress: Peace Without Accountability Is Not Peace

"Peace without accountability is not peace," said Rep. Mike Lawler (R-NY). "It is permission." Rep. Brad Sherman (D-CA) added: "What Azerbaijan did to Artsakh, they would do to Armenia if Armenia was defenseless. Only strengthening Armenia, as we should have done with Ukraine, can prevent the next war of acquisition and conquest." Speaker Emerita Nancy Pelosi (D-CA), reflecting on decades of Armenian American advocacy, said: "May we honor the memory of those victims, not only by remembrance, but resolve."

Sen. Adam Schiff (D-CA) called out the administration's retreat from Armenian Genocide recognition and noted that the White House peace agreement "does not even mention the prisoners of war that Azerbaijan continues to hold." Rep. Haley Stevens (D-MI) said: "U.S. military assistance should not, cannot flow to Azerbaijan while they continue to hold Armenian prisoners, occupy Armenian territory, and deny the right of return."

A False Peace Rewards Genocide, ANCA Warns

ANCA Executive Director Aram Hamparian rejected the current framework, stating: "A false peace — absent accountability — normalizes Azerbaijan's genocide of Artsakh. Worse still, that rewards this crime. That aids, abets, and emboldens its perpetrators. That punishes its victims. And sets the stage for future attacks — aggression aimed at finishing the genocidal work started more than a century ago."

ANCA Policy Director Alex Galitsky, who moderated the staff briefing, outlined what the agreement does not address. "The peace agreement, as it currently stands, includes no clause that would require the release of Armenian prisoners of war from arbitrary detention and custody," he said. "It would require no commitment on Azerbaijan's part to protect the millennia-old Armenian Christian heritage in Artsakh. It would not deal in any way with the status of the 150,000 Armenians who were forced from their homes, who want nothing more than to be able to return to the lands in which their families have lived for thousands of years."

Expert Panelists: Appeasement Brings Genocide, Not Peace

Dr. Robert Krikorian, a retired senior State Department official with 22 years of Armenia policy experience, offered this assessment of the peace process: "This is not a peace being negotiated between two parties. This is a diktat by Azerbaijan, with the backing of Turkey and the acquiescence of the West, for Armenia to capitulate fully and completely." On the Trump Route for International Peace and Prosperity (TRIPP) corridor framework, Krikorian said: "The so-called TRIPP is an ill-conceived project with little to no chance of success. And even if it does succeed, Armenia and Armenians will see no benefit from it — only weakened borders, weakened sovereignty, and an inability to defend itself."

International human rights lawyer Karnig Kerkonian said: "Appeasement, whitewashing genocidal intent, does not produce peace. It doesn't even bring war. It brings genocide."

White House Expected to Issue April 24th Statement

With the White House expected to issue its annual Armenian Remembrance Day statement on April 24th, the ANCA and Armenian Americans are urging President Trump to properly characterize the crime as genocide. Despite the U.S. House and Senate passing resolutions recognizing the Armenian Genocide nearly unanimously in 2019, and President Biden formally using the word "genocide" in 2021, President Trump fell short last year — issuing a statement that conspicuously avoided the term under Turkish pressure. Earlier this year, Vice President Vance deleted a post from his official account that had correctly identified the Armenian Genocide during his visit to Armenia's Genocide Memorial.

Bipartisan Legislation Targets Azerbaijan Accountability

The ANCA is pressing Congress to pass three key pieces of bipartisan legislation: the Azerbaijan Sanctions Review Act (H.R.5369), directing the administration to review Global Magnitsky sanctions against Azerbaijani officials responsible for war crimes and illegal detention; the ARMENIA Security Partnership Act (H.R.6840), which would prohibit the president from waiving Section 907 restrictions on U.S. military aid to Azerbaijan absent concrete steps toward a just peace; and the Armenian Genocide Education Act (H.R.2585), which would ensure that future generations of Americans learn the history and lessons of the Armenian Genocide.

Full video of both events is available on the ANCA's YouTube channel.

Congressional Participants

The Congressional Armenian Genocide Observance included remarks by Senator Adam Schiff (D-CA), Speaker Emerita Nancy Pelosi (D-CA), Congressional Armenian Caucus leaders Representatives Frank Pallone (D-NJ), Gus Bilirakis (R-FL), David Valadao (R-CA), and Brad Sherman (D-CA), and Representatives Gabe Amo (D-RI), Sanford Bishop (D-GA), Judy Chu (D-CA), Jim Costa (D-CA), Vince Fong (R-CA), Laura Friedman (D-CA), George Latimer (D-NY), Mike Lawler (R-NY), Mike Levin (D-CA), Seth Magaziner (D-RI), Jim McGovern (D-MA), Dave Min (D-CA), Delia Catalina Ramirez (D-IL), Luz Rivas (D-CA), Haley Stevens (D-MI), and Dina Titus (D-NV).
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Elizabeth S. Chouldjian
Armenian National Committee of America
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Congressional Armenian Genocide Observance 2026: From Remembrance to Responsibility

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