Nagorno Karabakh

So this week the Foreign Minister of Nagorno Karabakh came along with the Speaker of Parliament. A variety of events were lined up, so I'll give a quick run through:


First off there was a conference at the U.S. Institute of Peace where the delegation spoke. A lot of Azeris were present during this and did not hesitate to get up and voice their concerns. Unfortunately, they didn't ask too many questions and merely spread their propaganda, resulting in a less productive event. The delegation should have pushed their agenda more, which included: 1. Stressing the legitimacy of the independence of Nagorno Karabakh in accordance with international law. 2. Advocating parity in military aid. 3. Continual economic assistance from theUnited States.


















Next up was the reception of the NK delegation at the Capitol. Speakers included Congressmen Schiff, Pallone, Knollenberg, and Sherman, and of course the Speaker and Minister.


There was also a reception at the Embassy, so I'm sure the delegation from Karabakh enjoyed their week in the United States. What's more, their arrival educated us about the ongoing conflict and sparked numerous discussions among us back at the dorms. Their presence brought Armenians together regardless of politics or national origin in order to discuss an issue that is pertinent not only to all Armenians, but to the international community.

Intro

Hello to all the readers out there, my name is Levon and I will be blogging as an intern in the Armenian Assembly Summer Internship Program in Washington DC. I wouldn't want to waste a blog, so I'll give you a quick run down of my bio then post some pics:

Name:Levon Keushkerian
Origin: Los Angeles
School: California State Polytechnic University, Pomona (Cal Poly Pomona)


We had our fisrt day trip to this barbecue festival yesterday, and on the way we took some group shots of us in front of the White House, I'm the guy wearing the extremely bright green T-shirt:

We're about 21 interns strong this summer at the Georgetown University dorms, which we have converted into our little community for these two months. There are students from west coast, east coast, and the midwest; ranging from first generation, third generation, and some newcomers from Armenia, so we have quite a wide scope of Armenians here. We are already learning a lot from each other and having fun in the nation's capital. Updates should come a couple of times a week, so be sure to read up on what's going on in DC along with the interns in Yerevan this summer.