Armenian Assembly Advocacy Yields Results, Welcomes New Members to Caucus

ARMENIAN ASSEMBLY OF AMERICA

PRESS RELEASE

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Date:

Contact: Danielle Saroyan

Telephone: (202) 393-3434

Web: www.aaainc.org

ARMENIAN ASSEMBLY ADVOCACY YIELDS
RESULTS, WELCOMES MORE ARMENIAN CAUCUS MEMBERS 

WASHINGTON,
D.C. – As Congress returned to Washington, D.C. this month, the Armenian
Assembly of America (Assembly) held over 30 meetings with Congressional offices
and Members, thanking friends, discussing key issues, and adding more Members
to the Congressional Caucus on Armenian Issues.

The Assembly is pleased to welcome Representatives
Ken Buck (R-CO), Joe Kennedy III (D-MA), and Grace Meng (D-NY) as the latest
Members to join the Armenian Caucus. Last month, Reps. Ruben Gallego (D-AZ),
and Anthony Brown (D-MD) also joined the Caucus as a result of the Assembly's
efforts to expand the Caucus, thus bringing the total as we start 2018 to 117
Members.

"I'm proud to be joining the Congressional
Armenian Caucus. I look forward to learning more about issues that impact the
American-Armenian relationship and about ways to deepen ties between our two
nations," Rep. Buck told the Assembly.

Rep. Buck serves on the House Committee on Rules and
House Judiciary Committee, as well as the Judiciary Subcommittees on
Immigration and Border Security and Crime, Terrorism, Homeland Security and
Investigations. Last Congress, he also co-sponsored H.Res.220 and H.Res.154,
affirming the Armenian Genocide.

"I am proud to join the Congressional Armenian
Caucus. New York is home to many Armenian Americans and I am honored to
represent a strong and vibrant Armenian American community in my district in
Queens. I look forward to serving on the Caucus," Rep. Meng told the
Assembly.

Having previously served on the House Foreign
Affairs Committee, Rep. Meng now serves on the House Appropriations Committee
and its Subcommittees on State, Foreign Operations, and Related Programs as
well as Commerce, Justice, and Science. She represents the Sixth Congressional
District of New York, which includes the Armenian Church of the Holy Martyrs in
Bayside (Queens). Just this month, Community Board 11 in her district voted
unanimously to change the name of the street behind Holy Martyrs to
"Armenia Way" to honor the Armenians in Bayside. In addition to
co-sponsoring H.Res.220, the Congresswoman supported other Armenian Genocide
legislation, including H.Res.154 in the 114th Congress and H.Res.227 in the
113th Congress. She also co-sponsored H.R.4347, "Turkey Christian Churches
Accountability Act," in the 113th Congress.

Rep. Kennedy is a member of the House Energy &
Commerce Committee, and represents Massachusetts' 4th Congressional District,
near Boston. In 2015, he signed the Royce-Engel Letter, which urged the U.S.
and OSCE to "publicly condemn specific acts of aggression along the line
of contact" initiated by Azerbaijan, against Artsakh. The letter called
for "a few common sense steps for the U.S. and the Minsk Group to take to
deter further violence. Specifically, the call for all parties to withdraw
snipers, and the proposal to deploy OSCE monitors and equip them with gunfire
locator systems, provides tools to increase transparency and accountability for
each and every cross-boundary violation."

Rep. Gallego represents Arizona's Seventh
Congressional District, which includes portions of Phoenix. His district is
located near St. Apkar Armenian Apostolic Church in Scottsdale, where Assembly
Western Region Director Mihran Toumajan participated in its "Armenia
Fest" this past November. Assembly Executive Director Bryan Ardouny will
present a Town Hall Briefing at St. Apkar Church on February 18.

"I'm proud to join the Armenian Caucus and
share in the richness that the Armenian Community brings to the United States.
I look forward to upholding and advocating for the Caucus' commitment to the
preservation of human and civil rights in Armenia, the United States, and
around the world," Rep. Gallego said to the Assembly.

Rep. Brown is part of the House Committee on Ethics,
House Committee on Natural Resources, and House Armed Services Committee. He
represents Maryland's Fourth Congressional District, which is comprised of
portions of Prince George's County and Anne Arundel County near Washington,
D.C.'s suburbs. Assembly Board Member Annie Totah and Executive Director
Ardouny have spoken with Rep. Brown on numerous occasions on U.S.-Armenia and
U.S.-Artsakh relations, and the importance of joining the Armenian Caucus.

"The Armenian Assembly looks forward to working
with these new Members and with the leadership of the Armenian Caucus as we
continue to strengthen U.S.-Armenia relations and confront Azerbaijan's ongoing
and deadly cease-fire violations," stated Executive Director Bryan
Ardouny. "In 2018, we will also continue to expand our network of State Chairs
across the country and are also planning a National Advocacy Conference in
Washington, D.C. later this year," he added.

The Armenian Caucus was established in 1995 as an
informal, bipartisan group of legislators dedicated to maintaining and
strengthening the U.S.-Armenia relationship. The coordinated efforts of this
diverse coalition of Congressional friends of Armenia and the Armenian American
community help to raise greater awareness of Armenian American issues on
Capitol Hill and unique and lasting bonds between the American and Armenian
people.

The Congressional Caucus on Armenian Issues is
currently Co-Chaired by Rep. Frank Pallone, Jr. (D-NJ), Rep. Jackie Speier
(D-CA), Rep. David Trott (R-MI), and Rep. David Valadao (R-CA) with Vice
Co-Chairs Rep. Adam Schiff (D-CA) and Gus Bilirakis (R-FL).

Established in 1972, the Armenian Assembly of
America is the largest Washington-based nationwide organization promoting
public understanding and awareness of Armenian issues. The Assembly is a
non-partisan, 501(c)(3) tax-exempt membership organization.

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2018-002

Photo
Caption 1: Armenian Assembly Western Region Director Mihran Toumajan, Rep. Ken
Buck (R-CO), Assembly Grassroots & Development Associate Mariam Khaloyan,
and Assembly Executive Director Bryan Ardouny

Photo
Caption 2: Rep. Linda Sanchez (D-CA) speaking with Armenian Assembly Western
Region Director Mihran Toumajan, Assembly Grassroots & Development
Associate Mariam Khaloyan, and Assembly Executive Director Bryan Ardouny

Photo Caption 3: Armenian Assembly Western Region Director Mihran
Toumajan, Assembly Grassroots & Development Associate Mariam Khaloyan, Rep.
Duncan Hunter (R-CA) who co-sponsored H.Res.220, and Assembly Executive
Director Bryan Ardouny

Photo
Caption 4: Armenian Assembly Grassroots
& Development Associate Mariam Khaloyan, Rep. Ruben Gallego (D-AZ), and
Assembly Public Affairs Associate Danielle Saroyan

Photo Caption 5: Armenian Assembly Executive Director Bryan Ardouny,
Assembly Grassroots & Development Associate Mariam Khaloyan, Rep. Mike
Bishop (R-MI), and Assembly Western Region Director Mihran Toumajan

Photo Caption 6: Armenian Assembly Executive
Directory Bryan Ardouny, Armenian Assembly Board Member Annie Totah, and Rep.
Anthony Brown (D-MD)

Photo Caption 7: Armenian Assembly Western Region Director Mihran
Toumajan, Assembly Grassroots & Development Associate Mariam Khaloyan, Rep.
Dina Titus (D-NV), and Assembly Executive Director Bryan Ardouny

Photo
Caption 8: Armenian Assembly Executive Director Bryan Ardouny, Armenian Caucus
Co-Chair Rep. Frank Pallone, Jr. (D-NJ), and Assembly Grassroots &
Development Associate Mariam Khaloyan

Photo Caption 9: Armenian Assembly Western Region Director Mihran
Toumajan and Rep. Zoe Lofgren (D-CA)

Available here: http://bit.ly/2DNNdxn