YEREVAN. – U.S. Ambassador John Heffern congratulated Armenia for its strong commitment to combat human trafficking.

He recalled that Armenia maintained the highest status of Tier 1 in the 2014 Trafficking in Persons (TIP) report released by Secretary of State John Kerry.

Since 2003 the U.S. government has provided more than $2 million to Armenia's anti-trafficking effort. The Ambassador said a key part of Armenia's success is interaction between the Foreign Ministry, Social Affairs Ministry, police and other governmental agencies.

“We commend Armenia's aggressive pursuit of TIP offenders and encourage its continued efforts to stop them. We look  for continued Armenian progress and success this year,” Ambassador said.