Obama calls for $40 million in assistance to Armenia

President Barack Obama’s fiscal year 2011 (FY11) budget, released earlier on Monday, calls for $40 million in assistance to Armenia — $10 million more than his FY10 request, but still $1 million less than the total appropriated by Congress last year.

The Administration did not extend the parity principle to International Military Education, and Training, providing for Azerbaijan $900,000 and $450,000 for Armenia, the Armenian National Committee of America statement reads.

Armenian American organizations expected the assistance to be $70 million. Anyway, the president requested $22.12 million in assistance to Azerbaijan, $120,000 more than appropriated by Congress last year.

“We welcome the decision by the Obama Administration to ask for $10 million more in economic aid to Armenia this year than he did last year, and also his proposal to maintain parity in a key area of military aid to Armenia and Azerbaijan,” Aram Hamparian, ANCA executive director said.