The propaganda company is reducing its relationship with Turkey under pressure

“A lot of people have bought summer houses and fishing boats and enlisted their grandchildren through college by lying about Armenia and covering up Azerbaijan,” he said.

The Armenian National Committee and another group sought to pressure the US Armenian legislature to hold demonstrations outside its offices in Washington and Los Angeles on Wednesday, urging it to sever ties with Mercury’s customers if it represents Turkey.

The campaign had an effect. Kathryn Parker, chairman of the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors, and Hilda Solis, Obama administration’s supervisor and former Labor secretary, wrote a letter to Mercury on Wednesday. . ”(Contractor for Mercury Los Angeles County, a large Armenian population.)

California State Assembly Speaker Anthony Renton and 16 other state legislators Told Mercury They will not be involved with the company until they represent Turkey on Thursday. The Los Angeles Community College District announced that Mercury would “begin to use 30-day layoff terms” in its contract if Turkey is a customer.

Wednesday declined to comment. The Turkish embassy did not respond to a request for comment.

Armenian pressure is mounting as Washington begins to turn its attention to fighting.

Representative Jackie Spear (D-Calif.) Earlier this month introduced a resolution condemning Turkey’s role in the conflict with Azerbaijan, which attracted 67 co – sponsors. Also on Friday, Foreign Secretary Mike Pompeo met separately with Armenian Foreign Minister Sohrab Manatsakyan and Azerbaijani Foreign Minister Jaihun Peramov.

The attempt is reminiscent of an attempt to persuade Washington’s propaganda agencies representing the Saudi government in 2018 to sever ties with the kingdom after the assassination of Jamal Kashoghi at the Saudi consulate in Istanbul. The Washington Post, Kashogi was a commentator, Threatened to ban two campaigners If their companies do not stop working for Saudi Arabia, from writing columns for paper.

This pressure eventually led five campaign companies to sever ties with the state.

Turkey and Azerbaijan would not have lost power now without Wednesday, according to a copy filed with the judiciary that Turkey hired in January on a deal scheduled to take place by the end of this year. The agency has been accused of helping organize events that allow Turkey to “connect with public policy partners” and advising the Turkish government on media relations.

According to the disclosure file, Turkey also retains the lobbying companies Capitol Council and Greenberg Druிக்k, while the Azerbaijani government retains the PGR group. The nation’s campaigners include former delegates Bill Delahunt (D-Mass.), Charles Bostani (R-L.), Randy Forbes (R-W.) And Albert Win (D-Ma.).

Meanwhile, the Armenian government appointed former Senate majority leader Bob Dole last month to assist in Washington.

Another former legislator, Bob Livingston (R-La.), A former representative of the Livingston Group, stopped representing the Azerbaijani government last week, and according to a disclosure file it is not clear whether Livingston is actually campaigning for the country.

Asmar Youssefzada, a spokesman for the Azerbaijani embassy in Washington, D.C., wrote in an email to Politico that the country had not been in contact with Livingston for more than a decade.

Livingston did not respond to a request for comment. The Capitol Council and the Greenberg Drurick declined to comment.

Hambarian said it now plans to increase pressure on the PGR group as Mercury surrenders. But PGR could be a difficult target: the company said in a statement that it “wants to continue representing Azerbaijan.”