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Nancy Pelosi made a surprise visit to Armenia with an all-Democrat congressional delegation in tow on Saturday. The 82-year-old Speaker of the House is on her way out as Republicans are expected to take back control of the House in the 2022 midterm elections in November. She is clearly boosting her legacy as a human rights advocate. Last month she made international headlines by visiting Taiwan with a congressional delegation. Now she is in Armenia pledging the support of Americans to that country. New clashes with Azerbaijan broke out last week as Russia negotiated a cease-fire that began last Wednesday.

Pelosi was in Berlin this weekend for a G7 speakers’ summit. She delivered a keynote address condemning Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. She also spoke of support for Kyiv and to “reaffirm that our shared and unwavering commitment to the Ukrainian people will endure until their victory is won.” She and her delegation decided rather spontaneously, according to Pelosi, to make the trip to Armenia on Saturday.

There is a fragile cease-fire between the two countries after more than 200 soldiers were killed in recent days. The fighting is along the border of Armenia and Azerbaijan. Russia negotiated the cease-fire. Armenia is an ally of Russia and Azerbaijan is an ally of Turkey. Pelosi is jumping into the fray and taking the United States with her. Pelosi’ office touts her gravitas.

Pelosi, saying President Biden was a strong supporter of Armenia, said from Yerevan that “we’ll work together on what the next steps may be” to address the flare up of violence. “What we’d like to see right away is a cease fire and a recognition of how this all came to be in the last week.”

“The democracy in Armenia is a value to the world, a joy to the world,” Pelosi said. “We have to enlarge the issue though… What does security in Armenia mean to regional and global security? What does democracy in Armenia mean to end the fight between democracy and autocracy which is going on in the world now? In both cases, it means a great deal.”

Her office said that she is the highest ranking U.S. official to visit the country since its independence in 1991 from the former Soviet Union. Pelosi told reporters in Berlin that the visit “is all about human rights and the respecting the dignity and worth of every person,” according to the Associated Press.

Has the White House stepped aside and given Pelosi the authority to take a farewell tour overseas and speak as though she is in charge of foreign policy? She is certainly emboldened and taking advantage of her position. Armenia wasn’t on her schedule until the last minute. She is accompanied by two Armenian Americans, Democrat Reps. Jackie Speier and Anna Eshoo of California. Democrat Rep. Frank Pallone (NJ) is also a member of the delegation. He chairs the House Energy and Commerce Committee and is the longtime co-chair of the Congressional Caucus on Armenian Issues.

Clashes in the region are nothing new. Pelosi was in an awkward position of siding with Russia as she supported Armenia.

Armenia and Azerbaijan are neighboring former Soviet states, which have fought for decades over the disputed territory of Nagorno-Karabakh. The area is internationally recognized as part of Azerbaijan, but has been under the control of Armenian-backed forces since 1994.

Clashes in the region, which is located on the two nation’s borders, led to about 50 deaths on each side this week, some of the deadliest numbers since a full blown war there in 2020. Armenia accused Azerbaijani forces of seizing settlements beyond Nagorno-Karabakh, inside Armenia, during the fighting. Azerbaijan didn’t dispute the accusation, instead arguing that it was responding to “provocations” from Armenian forces.

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Efforts by Russia, a close ally to both Soviet states, to broker a peace deal have failed. Moscow did, however, successfully get the two countries to agree to a cease-fire on Wednesday. The deal has held as of Saturday, but the situation remains fragile.

The United States has been in a delicate diplomatic dance in its support of Armenia for decades.

The conflict in the mountainous region of Nagorno-Karabakh dates to the 1980s, and later erupted into a full-scale war in 2020, in which Azerbaijan recaptured territories that Armenia had occupied for decades.

The Southern Caucasus region has long been a source of diplomatic sensitivities for the United States. But after lobbying by members of Congress and Armenian Americans President Biden in 2021 formally recognized a massacre of Armenians by the Ottoman Empire in the early 20th century as a genocide — a term that the United States had long avoided for fear of harming its relationship with Turkey. Historians estimate that 1.5 million Armenians were killed in a campaign of forced marches and mass killings during World War I.

Let’s hope the cease-fire lasts after Pelosi and her delegation leave the region. After Pelosi’s visit to Taiwan, China launched a series of military drills in the waters surrounding Taiwan. Some of the drills were in the areas that Taipei says are part of its territory.

In the meantime, Pelosi is building on her legacy and perhaps padding her resume to beef up her qualifications for an ambassadorship after she leaves Congress.

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