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BUSH, ALIYEV PRAISE OUTCOME OF TALKS
AzerNews Weekly, Azerbaijan
May 4 2006
US and Azeri leaders George Bush and Ilham Aliyev praised the outcome
of their meeting at the White House on Friday, saying they concur on
a number of key issues, including Iran and global energy security.
The United States reaffirmed that Azerbaijan is its important and
strategic partner in the region. "We highly appreciate Azerbaijan's
involvement in the anti-terror coalition," Bush said following
a 45-minute meeting with Aliyev. Bush expressed his appreciation
to Aliyev for the support in the Iraq war and for help in achieving
"what we all want, which is energy security." He said the country had a
"very important role to play" in meeting the world's energy needs.
Bush described Azerbaijan as "a modern Muslim country that is able
to provide for its citizens and understands that democracy is the
wave of the future." The two presidents also discussed the crisis
over Iran's nuclear program. Bush said the sides agreed that the
problem must be resolved through diplomatic channels. "Obviously we
talked about Iran and I assured the president of my desire to solve
this problem diplomatically and peacefully." Bush said, however,
that options were still open to settle the issue, including the use
of force, but he did not elaborate. Aliyev, speaking in English, said
Azerbaijan's stance coincides with that of Washington on all issues.
"Just like the US, Baku supports a peaceful settlement of the Upper
(Nagorno) Garabagh conflict [with Armenia] and other problems, as well
as the establishment of peace in the region. "We have agreed on the
need to expand and strengthen the strategic cooperation between our
countries." Aliyev spoke highly of the US support in the development
of Azerbaijan's energy resources. "We appreciate the US leadership's
support in strengthening regional security, i.e. establishing a
reliable transport infrastructure enabling to take the entire bulk
of Caspian oil and gas to world markets." The Azeri leader told a
news briefing after the talks that the military cooperation between
U.S. and Azerbaijan is "profound and firm". Both countries intend to
continue cooperating in this field, he said.
Asked if he took on any commitments during his meeting with Bush,
President Aliyev said he "did not come to Washington to do that". "I
came as a full-fledged partner and a friend," he said. Stance on Iran
President Aliyev made it clear that Azerbaijani territory could not be
used for a possible US attack on neighboring Iran. "Azerbaijan and Iran
have signed an agreement banning the use of each other's territories
for third country attacks. We try to honor all the agreements we have
reached," Aliyev said addressing the Council on Foreign Relations as
he opened his visit to the U.S. last Wednesday.
Some experts said earlier the Bush administration was likely to
focus on efforts to draw Azerbaijan into an international coalition
against Iran over what the West describes as Tehran's ambition to
develop a nuclear weapon. The president issued a harsh response to
a question concerning US-Iran tensions, saying his country would
not be used by those trying to engage in confrontation. "Azerbaijan
is not a suitable venue for the realization of such objectives." A
representative of the International Crisis Group, an organization
engaged in conflict prevention worldwide, said it is beyond doubt that
one of the reasons President Aliyev had been invited to the White
House had to do with Iran's nuclear ambitions. The project director
on South Caucasus, Sabine Frasier, said that if the US is trying to
gain long-term Azeri support for its policy on Iran and the entire
region, the best alternative would be for Washington to ensure a
peaceful settlement of the Armenia-Azerbaijan conflict. "So long as
the conflict remains unresolved, Azerbaijan will not be interested in
spoiling its developing relations with Iran. And the other way round,
if Azerbaijan decides to use military action in Upper Garabagh, which
is located near Iran's border in the north, this could compromise US
energy and security interests and lead to a halt of foreign investment
in the Azerbaijani economy. "The US should be interested in conflict
resolution, as the territory hosting the Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan oil
export pipeline, as well as the Baku-Tbilisi-Erzurum gas pipeline,
both considered an important element of Western energy security, is 30
miles away from the conflict zone," Frasier said. While commenting on
the visit outcomes, the head of the international relations department
of the Azerbaijani Presidential Administration, Novruz Mammadov,
said the visit had opened up a new page in the history of bilateral
relations. Mammadov told state-owned Azerbaijan television that the
negotiations would have a soothing impact on bilateral relations
because the visit has helped elevate all spheres of cooperation
to a completely new strategic level. Now Azerbaijan, as a regional
leader, will demonstrate its role and significance in the developments
unfolding in Eurasia, Mammadov added.
AzerNews Weekly, Azerbaijan
May 4 2006
US and Azeri leaders George Bush and Ilham Aliyev praised the outcome
of their meeting at the White House on Friday, saying they concur on
a number of key issues, including Iran and global energy security.
The United States reaffirmed that Azerbaijan is its important and
strategic partner in the region. "We highly appreciate Azerbaijan's
involvement in the anti-terror coalition," Bush said following
a 45-minute meeting with Aliyev. Bush expressed his appreciation
to Aliyev for the support in the Iraq war and for help in achieving
"what we all want, which is energy security." He said the country had a
"very important role to play" in meeting the world's energy needs.
Bush described Azerbaijan as "a modern Muslim country that is able
to provide for its citizens and understands that democracy is the
wave of the future." The two presidents also discussed the crisis
over Iran's nuclear program. Bush said the sides agreed that the
problem must be resolved through diplomatic channels. "Obviously we
talked about Iran and I assured the president of my desire to solve
this problem diplomatically and peacefully." Bush said, however,
that options were still open to settle the issue, including the use
of force, but he did not elaborate. Aliyev, speaking in English, said
Azerbaijan's stance coincides with that of Washington on all issues.
"Just like the US, Baku supports a peaceful settlement of the Upper
(Nagorno) Garabagh conflict [with Armenia] and other problems, as well
as the establishment of peace in the region. "We have agreed on the
need to expand and strengthen the strategic cooperation between our
countries." Aliyev spoke highly of the US support in the development
of Azerbaijan's energy resources. "We appreciate the US leadership's
support in strengthening regional security, i.e. establishing a
reliable transport infrastructure enabling to take the entire bulk
of Caspian oil and gas to world markets." The Azeri leader told a
news briefing after the talks that the military cooperation between
U.S. and Azerbaijan is "profound and firm". Both countries intend to
continue cooperating in this field, he said.
Asked if he took on any commitments during his meeting with Bush,
President Aliyev said he "did not come to Washington to do that". "I
came as a full-fledged partner and a friend," he said. Stance on Iran
President Aliyev made it clear that Azerbaijani territory could not be
used for a possible US attack on neighboring Iran. "Azerbaijan and Iran
have signed an agreement banning the use of each other's territories
for third country attacks. We try to honor all the agreements we have
reached," Aliyev said addressing the Council on Foreign Relations as
he opened his visit to the U.S. last Wednesday.
Some experts said earlier the Bush administration was likely to
focus on efforts to draw Azerbaijan into an international coalition
against Iran over what the West describes as Tehran's ambition to
develop a nuclear weapon. The president issued a harsh response to
a question concerning US-Iran tensions, saying his country would
not be used by those trying to engage in confrontation. "Azerbaijan
is not a suitable venue for the realization of such objectives." A
representative of the International Crisis Group, an organization
engaged in conflict prevention worldwide, said it is beyond doubt that
one of the reasons President Aliyev had been invited to the White
House had to do with Iran's nuclear ambitions. The project director
on South Caucasus, Sabine Frasier, said that if the US is trying to
gain long-term Azeri support for its policy on Iran and the entire
region, the best alternative would be for Washington to ensure a
peaceful settlement of the Armenia-Azerbaijan conflict. "So long as
the conflict remains unresolved, Azerbaijan will not be interested in
spoiling its developing relations with Iran. And the other way round,
if Azerbaijan decides to use military action in Upper Garabagh, which
is located near Iran's border in the north, this could compromise US
energy and security interests and lead to a halt of foreign investment
in the Azerbaijani economy. "The US should be interested in conflict
resolution, as the territory hosting the Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan oil
export pipeline, as well as the Baku-Tbilisi-Erzurum gas pipeline,
both considered an important element of Western energy security, is 30
miles away from the conflict zone," Frasier said. While commenting on
the visit outcomes, the head of the international relations department
of the Azerbaijani Presidential Administration, Novruz Mammadov,
said the visit had opened up a new page in the history of bilateral
relations. Mammadov told state-owned Azerbaijan television that the
negotiations would have a soothing impact on bilateral relations
because the visit has helped elevate all spheres of cooperation
to a completely new strategic level. Now Azerbaijan, as a regional
leader, will demonstrate its role and significance in the developments
unfolding in Eurasia, Mammadov added.