WASHINGTON, D.C. - The Armenian Assembly of America (Assembly) has called on the US Senate Judiciary Committee to obtain the Attorney General nominee Senator Jeff Sessions' (R-AL) commitment to enforce the letter and spirit of laws already on the books to end Azerbaijan's caviar diplomacy tactics.

In a letter to United States Senate Committee on the Judiciary Chairman Senator Chuck Grassley (R-IA) and Ranking Member Sen. Patrick Leahy (D-VT) on the upcoming nomination of Sen. Sessions for Attorney General, Assembly Board of Trustees Co-Chairs Anthony Barsamian and Van Krikorian identified several issues of concern, particularly as related "to the undue influence of foreign governments on America's democratic institutions and the need to fully enforce the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) and ensure compliance of the Foreign Agents Registration Act (FARA)."

"When it comes to the integrity of America's constitutional system, the rule of law and our governance process, we must ensure that the law is duly enforced and that any attempt by foreign governments and their agents are roundly condemned and promptly prosecuted," Assembly Co-Chairs added. "Both Turkey and Azerbaijan have circumvented our laws and bought influence without repercussion for many years now. That has to stop."

The Assembly stressed their concern about Azerbaijan President Ilham Aliyev constantly buying foreign influence, citing many instances in the letter. For example, in a Bloomberg News article published last week entitled "Azeri Oil Money Got a Pass From This Ethics Committee," the columnist writes about the illegally funded congressional trips to Baku discovered by the Office of Congressional Ethics (OCE), which included expensive gifts given to U.S. legislators.

Last month, the European Stability Initiative (ESI) denounced Azerbaijan's lobbying tactics and reported that expensive watches, jewelry, computers, and large sums of money, among other gifts, were provided to several politicians from a number of countries in Europe. ESI stated that "the ease with which democratic institutions and safeguards can be undermined has emerged as a fundamental threat to European democracy."