In the very sensitive geopolitical situation in the South Caucasus, the United States Congress is once more being asked to play a role, but this time in a manner that threatens to undermine fragile peace progress rather than reinforce it. The Armenian National Committee of America (ANCA) and pro-Armenian congressional factions have vociferously opposed H.R. 5632, the so-called Peace Act introduced by Rep. Darrell Issa.

Their criticisms highlight, among other things, the bill’s failure to address Armenian "hostages, displaced persons" from so-called Artsakh (Garabagh - Azerbaijan’s internationally recognised territory), the preservation of Armenian Christian heritage, and the “occupation” of Armenian sovereign territory. Within their narrative, H.R. 5632 is insufficiently ambitious and dangerously blind to ongoing injustices.

Yet, from the vantage of a realist engaged in diplomacy, a deeper question looms: To what extent will Congress persist in pretending not to hear the President’s comprehensive peace initiative, and continue to enact measures that may actively harm the delicate reconciliation process between Azerbaijan and Armenia? In the most extreme reading, this posture risks co-opting US foreign policy in favour of one side’s maximalist claims, at the expense of regional security, trust, and eventual closure.

At the crux of the contest, the arguments advanced by ANCA stir risks of congressional overreach, and the uneasy balance between advocacy and diplomacy in........

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