FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
CONTACT: Jennifer Cannata
October 27, 2004
Andrew Souvall

(202) 225-4671

PALLONE CRITICAL OF U.S. DECISION TO ABSTAIN FROM UNITED NATIONS COMMITTEE
VOTE ON CONTROVERSIAL AZERI RESOLUTION

Organizing Armenian Caucus letter to President Bush

Washington, D.C. — U.S. Rep. Frank Pallone, co-chair of the Congressional
Caucus on Armenian Issues, today criticized the Bush Administration’s
decision to abstain from a United Nations committee vote on a controversial
Azeri resolution calling for the removal of Armenians from Nagorno-Karabakh.
The resolution was approved today by the U.N. General Committee and is now
able to be brought before the U.N. General Assembly.

“I am deeply disappointed in the United States’ decision to abstain from
this vote,” Pallone said. “This mean-spirited resolution by the Azeri
government threatens to destabilize peace talks in the region. If we are
truly committed to finding a lasting solution to the NKR conflict then we
need to take a stronger stance.”

In a letter written yesterday, prior to the committee vote, to U.N.
Ambassador John Danforth, Pallone urged the U.S. to vote against the
resolution and to condemn the Azeri government for threatening peace and
stability in the region.

“I can’t stress enough, the crucial role that the United States plays in the
negotiations over Nagorno-Karabakh, to help the people of this region find a
lasting and equitable peace,” Pallone wrote in the letter to Ambassador
Danforth. “A failure on our part to forcefully and publicly confront the
Azerbaijani government over these destabilizing maneuvers would, in my view,
send extremely dangerous signals to Azerbaijan. These desperate tactics by
Azerbaijan undermine our efforts and seriously complicate our diplomacy in
the region. ”

The New Jersey congressman is now working to gain support for an Armenian
Caucus letter to President Bush urging that the United States oppose the
resolution if it is brought before the U.N. General Assembly.

Text of Pallone’s letter to Ambassador Danforth follows.

October 26, 2004

United States Mission to the United Nations
140 East 45th Street
New York, NY 10017

Dear Ambassador Danforth,

I write to you today to urge your immediate action against a troubling move
by the government of Azerbaijan, which threatens the stability of the
Transcaucuses region, and jeopardizes the cease fire that was established in
the Nagorno-Karabakh and Azerbaijan conflict nearly a decade ago. Recently,
the Azeri representative to the United Nations, Yashar Aliyev, sent a
request to the U.N General Committee asking for the consideration of a
disturbing resolution regarding the “situation in the occupied territories
of Azerbaijan.” If the United States does not act swiftly to stop the
adoption of this resolution, the measure can negatively affect the
Nagorno-Karabakh peace process.

I can’t stress enough, the crucial role that the United States plays in the
negotiations over Nagorno-Karabakh, to help the people of this region find a
lasting and equitable peace. A failure on our part to forcefully and
publicly confront the Azerbaijani government over these destabilizing
maneuvers would, in my view, send extremely dangerous signals to Azerbaijan.
These desperate tactics by Azerbaijan undermine our efforts and seriously
complicate our diplomacy in the region.

I hope that the United States will vote against this resolution when it is
considered in the U.N. General Committee, and by doing so, condemn such
actions by Azerbaijan, further ensuring that all parties involved in this
conflict make a genuine commitment towards peace and stability.

Sincerely,
FRANK PALLONE, JR.
Member of Congress

cc: Ambassador Steve Mann

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Jennifer Karch Cannata
Press Secretary
Office of U.S. Rep. Frank Pallone, Jr.
420 Cannon House Office Building
Washington, DC 20515
(202) 225-4671 office
(202) 225-9665 fax