Member of the US House of Representatives from 2013.
Gregory Meeks: “Dear Mr. President. I congratulate you on the reelection of the President of the Republic of Azerbaijan. This choice is a great opportunity for the Azerbaijani people to participate in public affairs and strengthen their interests. I hope that during your next presidency we will cooperate with you and your administration to strengthen the US-Azerbaijani ties. “
Gregory Meeks: “The USA gives a high assessment of the role of Azerbaijan in the mission in Afghanistan. I will continue to support the growth of trade and foreign investment between our countries. ” Source: xalqqazeti.com
Gregory Meeks: “Azerbaijan and the US are an example of democracy for the world and the region.” Source: 1news.az
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SOURCES AND PRESS
Washington noted the importance of relations between the US and Azerbaijan
Subcommittee on Europe, Eurasia, and Emerging Threats of the U.S. House Committee on Foreign Affairs has hosted hearing “Azerbaijan: U.S. Energy, Security, and Human Rights Interests” in Washington.
Day.Az reports with reference to AzerTAc.
During the hearings, chaired by Congressman Dana Rohrabacher and with the participation of committee members, Congressmen Gregory Meeks, Mo Brooks, Ted Deutch and William Keating, reports and recommendations were addressed by Former US Ambassador to Azerbaijan Richard Kauzlarich, Director of Central Asia-Caucasus Institute, School of Advanced International Studies Svante Cornell and Fellow at Kennan Institute, Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars, Audrey Altstadt.
R. Kauzlarich expressed his views on the US-Azerbaijan relations, noting that he did not agree with the conclusion of many experts who considered US policy towards Azerbaijan to be insolvent over the past two decades. The former ambassador also stressed that the United States of America, had always supported the leadership of Azerbaijan in preserving the independence and territorial integrity of the country, including in the process of peaceful settlement of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict between Armenia and Azerbaijan within the framework of the OSCE Minsk Group. Washington also supported the contribution of USA investments and commercial interests to the country’s energy sector and the transportation of these resources to world markets, facilitated cooperation and the establishment of close ties between Azerbaijan and the OSCE and NATO, and the strengthening of economic relations with the European Union.
Kauzlarich noted that positive US-Azerbaijani relations over the years were built despite the unfair 907 amendment of the “US Freedom Support Act”, adopted by USA Congress in 1992, which prevents financial assistance to Azerbaijan (AzerTAc: anti-Azerbaijani amendment adopted under the efforts of the Armenian lobby was suspended in October 2001). He said that this law with respect to Azerbaijan had been perceived by Azerbaijan as an inadequate step by the USA government, especially in comparison with Armenia, which received financial assistance in support to freedom just when the Act entered into force. Congress, also until recently allocated money to the separatist regime in Khankendi. Among the facts that aroused Baku’s dissatisfaction, the former diplomat also noted the active position of the USA leadership regarding the resolution of the Ukrainian and Balkan conflicts and the principle of territorial integrity, but the USA inconsistency in the Armenian-Azerbaijani conflict. Then R.Kozlaric expressed his point of view regarding the situation with human rights in Azerbaijan.
Then the doctor of sciences Audrey Altstadt spoke, who told the members of the subcommittee about the geostrategic importance of Azerbaijan and the difficulties of its geographical location, relations with neighboring countries, taking into account close ties with Western countries and Israel, a secular form of government in the country. Taking into account the location of Azerbaijan and its energy resources entering the West, Azerbaijan is an important country for the USA and Europe in the sphere of political, energy, commercial ties, joint struggle against illegal drug trafficking and smuggling, religious extremism, the expert said.
The speaker also expressed her opinion regarding the domestic policy of Azerbaijan and the USA-Azerbaijan relations. O. Altstadt noted that Azerbaijanis were sensitive to the attitude of the United States of America towards Azerbaijan, especially in comparison with the USA position towards other neighboring countries and accordingly expected more attention from the USA. O. Altstadt recommended the US government to justify these expectations.
Then Mr Cornell, Ph.D, said the decline of Azerbaijan’s relationship with the U.S. bears similarities to tensions in America’s ties with a number of other allies, from Israel to South Korea, that have grown wary of U.S. foreign policy. He touched upon the Armenian-Azerbaijani conflict, saying it should be “placed on a path toward long-term and peaceful resolution, within the framework of international law, and with the degree of manipulation of external powers minimized”.
According to him, it is customary to blame Azerbaijan’s domestic evolution for the decline in the relationship with the USA. “The question that should be asked is how the U.S. could have allowed a relationship with a geostrategic pivot country like Azerbaijan to deteriorate so badly”
“It is important to recall that America’s relationship with Azerbaijan, like all former Soviet states, was built on several components. A constructive dialogue on human rights and democracy was one of these. Another was American engagement in supporting the development of the east-west energy corridor, which enabled Azerbaijan to market is resources independently. A third was close cooperation on security issues, which included America’s efforts to help resolve the Armenian-Azerbaijani conflict, as well as bilateral cooperation on defense, security, intelligence sharing and counter-terrorism.” He said: “These three areas, then, formed a tripod upon which U.S. policy was based. But in the past decade, that tripod has for all practical purposes faltered. American engagement in energy issues was strong down to the completion of initial pipeline infrastructure ten years ago; it has declined since then. The position of a U.S. Special Envoy for Eurasian Energy has been abolished; and America’s role in the efforts to bring Caspian natural gas to Europe is minimal. Security interests gained salience after 9/11, but began a slow decline after 2003 as U.S. attention shifted to Iraq and European governments were unwilling to pick up the slack. Not least, U.S. leadership in resolving the Armenian‐Azerbaijani conflict has been missing.” “Instead, it decided to embark on a project to normalize Turkish- Armenian relations. The core of that initiative was to open the Turkish‐Armenian border, which Turkey had closed in 1993 because of Armenia’s occupation of Azerbaijan’s territory. Since that time, a link had been maintained between Turkish‐Armenian relations and the Armenia‐Azerbaijan conflict.” Mr Cornell said: “The United States now pushed to cut that link, something that would heavily damage Azerbaijan’s interests, without offering Baku anything in the process. This initiative effectively was understood in Baku to mean that Azerbaijan’s most important national security issue was no longer an American concern.” “Furthermore, singling out Azerbaijan makes little sense in the absence of similar measures against regional countries with worse human rights records. Frustration with western indifference to the plight of the hundreds of thousands of displaced people from the Armenian‐occupied territories in Mountainous Karabakh and western Azerbaijan is already high in Azerbaijan, and any further targeting of Azerbaijan would reinforce the sense of western double standards, which officials at very high levels already denounce,” he added.
At the end of the hearings, the senior member of the subcommittee, Congressman Gregory Meeks said that Azerbaijan was located in a difficult region and it was important for the USA to manage to cooperate and to support its friends and allies, such as Azerbaijan. Chairman of the subcommittee Dana Rohrabacher, in turn, noted: “Azerbaijan is an important country for stability in the region and throughout the world”.
Congressman Mike Turner from Ohio also presented a letter in support of US-Azerbaijani relations. In his address, M.Terner provided details about the Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan (BTC) project and the planned project of the Southern Gas Corridor. Noting the importance of Azerbaijani resources and ensuring geopolitical energy security, he said: “Diversification of energy supplies is important for guaranteeing economic security, preserving independence and preventing the use of energy resources as a means of political pressure”. He called on the US government to continue cooperation with Azerbaijan to strengthen the energy security of Europe and promote regional stability.
Source: day.az