Independence for Artsakh

Floor Speech

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Mrs. NAPOLITANO. Madam Speaker, I rise today regarding the ongoing conflict in Artsakh.

Artsakh is a very American story--the victory of a free people over foreign rule.

The citizens of this proud Republic embody the words of our own Declaration of Independence--which affirmed for Americans and all the world--that the just powers of government derive from the consent of the governed.

To the well-known and thoroughly documented historical role of Artsakh as an integral part of Armenia going back thousands of years, we can add Artsakh's strong legal standing as an independent Republic.

But what matters most today--during an ongoing rain of rockets and bombs on Artsakh civilians by Azerbaijan and Turkey and their ISIS allies--is that freedom is not just about honoring history or enforcing the law.

Freedom is the only answer left for Artsakh's survival--History- based, law-based, survival-based remedial secession.

There can be no going back. Artsakh must not return to Azerbaijan.

The path forward is one of liberty, which is why I am today calling for official U.S. recognition of the Republic of Artsakh's independence.

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