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EurasiaNet.org, NY
Jan 5 2012
Azerbaijan: Baku Fumes Over Scuttled Ambassadorial Appointment
January 5, 2012 - 2:40pm, by Shahin Abbasov
The US Senate's failure to confirm the appointment of acting
ambassador Matthew Bryza to Baku threatens to undercut Azerbaijani
relations with the United States.
Bryza's mandate as US envoy expired at the end of 2011 when the Senate
did not take action to approve his recess appointment by US President
Barack Obama. Bryza's nomination had been opposed by Armenian Diaspora
lobbying groups, which apparently believed that the diplomat had
overly cozy ties to Azerbaijan and Turkey.
Bryza -- an experienced career diplomat who served as the US envoy in
the Nagorno-Karabakh peace talks, as well as point-man for
coordination of US energy policy in the Caspian Basin -- was
dispatched to Baku by Obama in early 2011 to serve as ambassador to
Baku on a temporary basis. The Senate's failure to act on his
appointment once again creates a void in a diplomatically sensitive
area. The nomination process must now start afresh. Deputy Chief of
Mission Adam Sterling is expected to lead the embassy in Baku until a
new envoy arrives.
Behind closed doors, Bryza's confirmation controversy is being
interpreted by officials in Baku as a slap in the face to Azerbaijan.
Many in Baku are particularly miffed at what they see as the undue
influence of US-based Armenian Diaspora organizations over the
confirmation process. Two of the leading critics of Bryza's nomination
in the Senate -- California Democrat Barbara Boxer, and Robert
Menendez, a New Jersey Democrat -- have well-established associations
with Armenia diaspora organizations.
Publicly, most Azerbaijani officials have described Bryza's status as
an internal matter for Washington. At the same time, some Azerbaijani
diplomats have hinted that US legislators are venal and prone to
influence peddling. Commenting on the lack of a Senate vote, Foreign
Minister Elmar Mammadyarov asserted that `Baku understands that some
pro-Armenian senators who are under Armenian Diaspora pressure are
behind this.' He also said at a December 23 briefing, that he `would
not link [the unscheduled vote] with the US role' in the Karabakh
talks.
On January 5, Foreign Ministry spokesman Elman Abdullayev expressed
hope that the Bryza flap would not hamper bilateral relations.
"Ambassador Matthew Bryza was a very strong, competent diplomat, who
did much to develop the relations between the United States and
Azerbaijan', the Interfax-Azerbaijan news agency quoted Abdullayev as
saying. "We would like to see the development of these relations on
the rise."
Later on, Abdullayev lashed out at US legislators for refusing to
confirm Bryza. `It is unpleasant to watch [this] incomprehensible
tendency, when the senators or congressmen become an instrument in the
hands of the Armenian lobby, thereby harming US interests,' the
diplomat was quoted as saying.
During a late December appearance at the Atlantic Council in
Washington, DC, Deputy Foreign Minister Araz Azimov took a swipe at
the Senate. According to Azerbaijani news agency reports, Azimov
asserted that the Senate's failure to confirm Bryza's nomination
`could become a bad precedent for American diplomats who would not
know whose policy they should pursue - the president's policy, the
Senate's or the interests of a handful of lobbyists.'
The US State Department has not responded to Azimov's or remarks.
Azimov's point of view seems to resonate in Baku. One group of
influential civil society activists has contended that `the Bryza
issue' raises questions about US fairness in the Karabakh peace
process. A December 15 letter signed by prominent civil society
figures in Baku and sent to President Obama and Secretary of State
Hillary Rodham Clinton outlined these concerns. In it, Eldar Namazov,
chief of staff under the late President Heydar Aliyev, Center for
National and International Studies Director Leyla Aliyeva (no relation
to President Ilham Aliyev), political analyst Ilgar Mammadov, economic
analyst Sabit Bagirov and Turan News Agency Director Mehman Aliyev
said that the botched Bryza vote `does not serve to refute' the
impression among many Azerbaijanis that the longtime Karabakh talks
have failed because of the influence of Armenian Diaspora lobbyists in
such mediator countries as the United States and France.
[Editor's Note: Mehman Aliyev formerly served as board chairman for
the Open Society Assistance Foundation-Azerbaijan, part of the Soros
Foundations network. EurasiaNet.org operates under the auspices of the
Open Society Institute, a separate part of that network.]
Namazov, who, like many Azerbaijani (and Georgian) public figures,
holds a high opinion of the Bryza, commented to EurasiaNet.org that
the campaign is `not about the ambassador's personality,' but `about
principles.'
`He is one of the best US diplomats ever working in our region. But,
in this case, the principle of the United States remaining an unbiased
mediator in Karabakh conflict is more important,' Namazov said.
The Bryza episode could have a lingering negative effect on Baku,
fostering distrust in whoever becomes the next American envoy to
Azerbaijan. "Confirmation in the Senate would mean that the Armenian
lobby is happy with a nomination and it will create suspicions in
Baku," Namazov said.
Analyst Elhan Shahinoglu, head of Baku's Atlas research center, raised
the possibility that a peeved Azerbaijani government `could delay
receiving, or even refuse to receive the new ambassador.'
Editor's note: Shahin Abbasov is a freelance reporter in Baku and a
board member of the Open Society Assistance Foundation-Azerbaijan.
http://www.eurasianet.org/node/64796
From: Baghdasarian
Jan 5 2012
Azerbaijan: Baku Fumes Over Scuttled Ambassadorial Appointment
January 5, 2012 - 2:40pm, by Shahin Abbasov
The US Senate's failure to confirm the appointment of acting
ambassador Matthew Bryza to Baku threatens to undercut Azerbaijani
relations with the United States.
Bryza's mandate as US envoy expired at the end of 2011 when the Senate
did not take action to approve his recess appointment by US President
Barack Obama. Bryza's nomination had been opposed by Armenian Diaspora
lobbying groups, which apparently believed that the diplomat had
overly cozy ties to Azerbaijan and Turkey.
Bryza -- an experienced career diplomat who served as the US envoy in
the Nagorno-Karabakh peace talks, as well as point-man for
coordination of US energy policy in the Caspian Basin -- was
dispatched to Baku by Obama in early 2011 to serve as ambassador to
Baku on a temporary basis. The Senate's failure to act on his
appointment once again creates a void in a diplomatically sensitive
area. The nomination process must now start afresh. Deputy Chief of
Mission Adam Sterling is expected to lead the embassy in Baku until a
new envoy arrives.
Behind closed doors, Bryza's confirmation controversy is being
interpreted by officials in Baku as a slap in the face to Azerbaijan.
Many in Baku are particularly miffed at what they see as the undue
influence of US-based Armenian Diaspora organizations over the
confirmation process. Two of the leading critics of Bryza's nomination
in the Senate -- California Democrat Barbara Boxer, and Robert
Menendez, a New Jersey Democrat -- have well-established associations
with Armenia diaspora organizations.
Publicly, most Azerbaijani officials have described Bryza's status as
an internal matter for Washington. At the same time, some Azerbaijani
diplomats have hinted that US legislators are venal and prone to
influence peddling. Commenting on the lack of a Senate vote, Foreign
Minister Elmar Mammadyarov asserted that `Baku understands that some
pro-Armenian senators who are under Armenian Diaspora pressure are
behind this.' He also said at a December 23 briefing, that he `would
not link [the unscheduled vote] with the US role' in the Karabakh
talks.
On January 5, Foreign Ministry spokesman Elman Abdullayev expressed
hope that the Bryza flap would not hamper bilateral relations.
"Ambassador Matthew Bryza was a very strong, competent diplomat, who
did much to develop the relations between the United States and
Azerbaijan', the Interfax-Azerbaijan news agency quoted Abdullayev as
saying. "We would like to see the development of these relations on
the rise."
Later on, Abdullayev lashed out at US legislators for refusing to
confirm Bryza. `It is unpleasant to watch [this] incomprehensible
tendency, when the senators or congressmen become an instrument in the
hands of the Armenian lobby, thereby harming US interests,' the
diplomat was quoted as saying.
During a late December appearance at the Atlantic Council in
Washington, DC, Deputy Foreign Minister Araz Azimov took a swipe at
the Senate. According to Azerbaijani news agency reports, Azimov
asserted that the Senate's failure to confirm Bryza's nomination
`could become a bad precedent for American diplomats who would not
know whose policy they should pursue - the president's policy, the
Senate's or the interests of a handful of lobbyists.'
The US State Department has not responded to Azimov's or remarks.
Azimov's point of view seems to resonate in Baku. One group of
influential civil society activists has contended that `the Bryza
issue' raises questions about US fairness in the Karabakh peace
process. A December 15 letter signed by prominent civil society
figures in Baku and sent to President Obama and Secretary of State
Hillary Rodham Clinton outlined these concerns. In it, Eldar Namazov,
chief of staff under the late President Heydar Aliyev, Center for
National and International Studies Director Leyla Aliyeva (no relation
to President Ilham Aliyev), political analyst Ilgar Mammadov, economic
analyst Sabit Bagirov and Turan News Agency Director Mehman Aliyev
said that the botched Bryza vote `does not serve to refute' the
impression among many Azerbaijanis that the longtime Karabakh talks
have failed because of the influence of Armenian Diaspora lobbyists in
such mediator countries as the United States and France.
[Editor's Note: Mehman Aliyev formerly served as board chairman for
the Open Society Assistance Foundation-Azerbaijan, part of the Soros
Foundations network. EurasiaNet.org operates under the auspices of the
Open Society Institute, a separate part of that network.]
Namazov, who, like many Azerbaijani (and Georgian) public figures,
holds a high opinion of the Bryza, commented to EurasiaNet.org that
the campaign is `not about the ambassador's personality,' but `about
principles.'
`He is one of the best US diplomats ever working in our region. But,
in this case, the principle of the United States remaining an unbiased
mediator in Karabakh conflict is more important,' Namazov said.
The Bryza episode could have a lingering negative effect on Baku,
fostering distrust in whoever becomes the next American envoy to
Azerbaijan. "Confirmation in the Senate would mean that the Armenian
lobby is happy with a nomination and it will create suspicions in
Baku," Namazov said.
Analyst Elhan Shahinoglu, head of Baku's Atlas research center, raised
the possibility that a peeved Azerbaijani government `could delay
receiving, or even refuse to receive the new ambassador.'
Editor's note: Shahin Abbasov is a freelance reporter in Baku and a
board member of the Open Society Assistance Foundation-Azerbaijan.
http://www.eurasianet.org/node/64796
From: Baghdasarian