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U.S. And Azerbaijan: A Friend In Need Is A Friend Indeed

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  • U.S. And Azerbaijan: A Friend In Need Is A Friend Indeed

    U.S. AND AZERBAIJAN: A FRIEND IN NEED IS A FRIEND INDEED

    Sacramento Bee, CA
    June 27 2013

    By Consulate General of Azerbaijan in Los Angeles
    Published: Thursday, Jun. 27, 2013 - 7:27 am

    LOS ANGELES, June 27, 2013 -- /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The following
    article is being released by Nasimi Aghayev, Consul General of
    Azerbaijan in Los Angeles:

    I was in Baku recently for the "U.S.-Azerbaijan Convention: Vision for
    Future", which brought together over 300 elected officials from the
    U.S., including senators and congressmen from Washington DC as well as
    state legislators and other elected officials from 42 states. The
    convention was a chance to reflect on how far the partnership has come
    and look forward to the future of this remarkable relationship.

    The convention was also an opportunity for U.S. officials to meet
    their Azerbaijani counterparts on a grand scale, and to learn more
    about Azerbaijan - and its vital importance for America.

    Sharing the same values as well as interests, the relationship is
    based on three key areas.

    Firstly, Azerbaijan has made an invaluable contribution to America's
    national security. It's a reliable ally in a difficult region: located
    at the crossroads of East and West, Azerbaijan is a rare example of a
    secular, modern and progressive Muslim-majority country. It has been a
    steadfast ally in the fight against terrorism and has been supporting
    the international effort in Afghanistan. Azerbaijani soldiers have
    served there with distinction alongside U.S. forces, and the country
    is a crucial part of the transport corridor for the Afghan mission:
    around 40% of cargoes for Afghanistan transit Azerbaijani territory.

    Additionally, Azerbaijan has been indispensable in supporting global
    energy security, a key policy of U.S. administrations for forty years.

    Azerbaijan has and will continue to be a reliable supplier of energy
    to Europe and the West. With the upcoming construction of a major gas
    pipeline to Europe, Azerbaijan will become key to developing a
    long-term and diverse energy supply for this continent.

    Thirdly, Azerbaijan is a symbol of intercultural and interreligious
    harmony. As our Foreign Minister Elmar Mammadyarov said recently in
    Washington addressing the American Jewish Committee, Azerbaijan
    "enjoys a centuries-long tradition of peaceful co-existence among its
    Muslim, Christian and Jewish communities." Secretary of State John
    Kerry lauded this exemplary tolerance, noting Azerbaijan's "commitment
    to fighting anti-Semitism and a commitment to diversity and
    pluralism."

    However, guided by an unhealthy zero-sum mentality, one particular
    group in Washington has always been unhappy and envious about anything
    positive happening in U.S.-Azerbaijan relations. Since the very
    beginning of Azerbaijan's independence, the Armenian lobby has
    conducted a comprehensive campaign in the nation's capital to damage
    U.S.-Azerbaijan strategic partnership, undermine Azerbaijani interests
    and defend at all costs the illegal military occupation of 20% of
    Azerbaijan's internationally recognized territory by Armenia - the
    occupation that was accompanied by massacres and total ethnic
    cleansing, leading to the forced expulsion of hundreds of thousands of
    Azerbaijanis from their native lands.

    In trying to hurt Azerbaijan, the Armenian lobby has constantly harmed
    U.S. national interests: and it continues to do so today only
    following its own ethnocentric agenda without any regard for America's
    core interests.

    One vivid example has been Section 907 of the Freedom Support Act,
    which, passed in 1992 after intensive lobbying of Congress by Armenian
    pressure groups, bans any direct U.S. government aid to Azerbaijan.

    The absurdity of the section lies in the fact that it rewarded the
    aggressor and punished the victim. And it prevented the U.S. to help
    its ally during the difficult years of 1990s when such help was very
    much needed. Although Section 907 has been waived every year since
    9/11, in recognition of Azerbaijan's support in the fight against
    terrorism, its very existence is damaging, and therefore the full
    repeal of this unfair law is critical for U.S.-Azerbaijan relations.

    It is important for our friendship, and it is important for the sake
    of restoring justice.

    Or take the case of Matthew Bryza, a skilled and highly esteemed
    diplomat with deep knowledge of the Caucasus, whose nomination to
    become America's next ambassador to Azerbaijan was blocked in 2010 in
    the U.S. Senate under the influence of Armenian special-interest
    groups. This undermining of U.S. policy left a key post unoccupied for
    many months, and after serving for a year on a recess appointment,
    Bryza had to return to Washington last January and quit the U.S.

    Foreign Service: a serious loss for American diplomacy.

    Armenian lobbying in Washington has also harmed America's leadership
    in the peace process on the Armenia-Azerbaijan conflict. To date,
    Armenia refuses to withdraw its forces from the occupied regions of
    Azerbaijan - the first step of the peace plan drawn up by
    international mediators - in contravention of numerous U.N. Security
    Council resolutions.

    The U.S. has both the capability and the motivation to persuade
    Armenia to withdraw its troops from Azerbaijan, enable the displaced
    population to return to their homes and begin building peace. Active
    engagement in the peace process by the U.S. is crucial to the success
    of this peace effort. So far it is missing. The Minsk Group, the
    primary international mediation body for this conflict, is still
    waiting for a permanent U.S. co-chair. It goes without saying that
    resolving this conflict is key to stability in an increasingly
    important part of the world, where the U.S. has so much at stake.

    The Convention in Baku demonstrated how far the U.S.-Azerbaijan
    relationship has come - but U.S. interests and U.S. values would be
    far better served by strengthening this partnership even further,
    while disregarding any attempts to undermine it.

    SOURCE Consulate General of Azerbaijan in Los Angeles

    http://www.sacbee.com/2013/06/27/5528624/us-and-azerbaijan-a-friend-in.html


    From: Baghdasarian
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