On September 28, Samantha Power, Administrator of the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), announced that the United States has deployed a Disaster Response Team (DART) to the South Caucasus to coordinate U.S. humanitarian assistance.

Power said that the United States is deeply concerned about the safety of the vulnerable population in Karabakh and the safety of more than 50,000 people who have fled to Armenia. She thanked the Armenian government for welcoming the newly arrived people and helping them find shelter. Power also thanked the humanitarian organizations working to meet urgent needs.

According to the USAID chief, DART will assess the situation, identify priority needs to scale up assistance, and work with partners to provide urgently needed assistance. "Last week's unacceptable military operation has exacerbated an already bad humanitarian situation," Power said, adding that Azerbaijan's nine-month blockade of the Lachin Corridor has cut off a vital route connecting Karabakh residents with food, medicine, fuel, and commercial supplies, causing severe shortages.

"The Lachin Corridor must remain fully and permanently open so that civilians can freely leave and return, communities can receive food, medicine, and other essential supplies, and humanitarian organizations can assess and meet needs on the ground," she added. According to Power, Azerbaijan must protect civilians, meet its obligations to respect the human rights and fundamental freedoms of all people in its country, and ensure that its forces comply with international humanitarian law. The official stressed that earlier this week, the United States announced $11.5 million in humanitarian aid to support communities affected by the ongoing crisis in the South Caucasus. She noted that since 2020, the United States has provided $23 million in humanitarian assistance in response to the situation in Karabakh. "These funds will be used to provide everything from food to psychosocial support to help people overcome the trauma of violence and mass displacement," she said.