Congressman Pallone defends Artsakh de-mining

PanARMENIAN.Net - Congressional Armenian Caucus founding Co-Chair Frank Pallone (D-NJ) visited with The HALO Trust in Artsakh's (Nagorno Karabakh) capital city of Stepanakert to review its ongoing de-mining efforts, after which he publicly reaffirmed the commitment of the Congressional Armenian Caucus to securing continued U.S. government support for this life-saving humanitarian program.

"The State Department believes, mistakenly, that the [Halo Trust de-mining] program is no longer needed, in other words that most of the de-mining has already occurred," Rep. Pallone told reporters following his visit. "What we learned today from The HALO Trust people is that's not the case. There is still more work to be done. So, we are going to go back to the U.S. and stress to the State Department, when we meet with them, that there's still more work to do."

In addition to The HALO Trust, Rep. Pallone's delegation also visited the Lady Cox Rehabilitation Center and met with its Director Vardan Tadevosyan, and his dedicated staff, who provide high-quality, specialized medical care each year to approximately 1,000 local and regional patients. Among those receiving treatment include patients - from Artsakh, Armenia, Russia, and Georgia - with spinal cord injuries, elderly stroke victims, and infants and children born with disabilities, such as autism, cerebral palsy, and spina bifida. The ANCA continues to advocate for expanding U.S. assistance to Artsakh to support the life-changing efforts of this center.