Recognizing the 31st Anniversary of the Khojaly Massacre

Floor Speech

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Mr. COHEN. Mr. Speaker, February 26 marks the 31st anniversary of the massacre of hundreds of people in the town of Khojaly, Azerbaijan. Khojaly, which is in the Nagorno-Karabakh region of Azerbaijan, was once home to 7,000 people. This was the largest killing of ethnic Azerbaijani civilians during the Armenia-Azerbaijan conflict. On February 26, 1992, Armenian armed forces massacred over 600 unarmed people--including 106 women, 63 children and 70 elderly people--and left less than 2,000 survivors. Hundreds more became disabled due to their injuries. More than 100 children lost a parent and 25 children lost both parents. At least 8 families were entirely killed.

Although a cease-fire was negotiated in 1994, it is my hope that Armenia and Azerbaijan can come together and find peace. Escalation of conflict in the Nagorno-Karabakh region is not in the interest of the South Caucuses. Long-term peace, security, and regional cooperation would greatly benefit the region and the world.

Azerbaijan has been a strong partner of the United States and its allies. This cooperation has included sending significant humanitarian aid to Ukraine during the ongoing war with Russia; playing a leadership role in non-proliferation issues; providing troops to serve shoulder- to-shoulder with U.S. forces in Kosovo, Iraq, and Afghanistan; allowing transit of non-lethal equipment used by coalition forces through Azerbaijan to Afghanistan; construction of the Southern Gas Corridor from the Caspian Sea to Italy, thereby providing Europe with an alternative to Russian energy sources; and supplying 40 percent of Israel's oil. Azerbaijan also has a thriving Jewish community and has outstanding relations with Israel.

As Azerbaijanis throughout the world commemorate the massacre and continue to grieve the loss of loved ones, I hope they can find peace amidst this tragedy.

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