US envoy says strategic partnership with Azerbaijan to continue after polls
MPA news agency
3 Nov 04
BAKU
“Strategic partnership between Azerbaijan and the USA will continue
irrespective of who will become the new US president,” the head of the
US diplomatic mission, Reno Harnish, told a news conference today. He
said that Bush and Kerry had stated their recognition of Azerbaijan’s
territorial integrity and their intention to continue cooperation in
the delivery of Azerbaijan’s energy resources to world markets. The
interests of Washington and Baku coincide in many aspects, in
particular in the implementation of energy projects and antiterror
fight, Harnish noted.
Mr Harnish stressed that even if George Bush was re-elected for a
second term, some changes would be made to the US foreign
policy. However, both candidates state that they will continue to
fight terrorism persistently. Azerbaijan plays a significant role in
this process and therefore, it remains an important partner of the
USA.
Commenting on the possibility of the repeal of Section 907 [of the
Freedom Support Act banning direct US aid to the Azerbaijani
government], the US ambassador said that its suspension in 2001 had
played a fundamental role in the development of US-Azerbaijani
relations. But it is up to the Congress to repeal the section.
Speaking about the Armenian-Azerbaijani conflict, the ambassador said
that the USA wanted the peace talks to continue and to succeed and
promised that the USA would join the process in a new format.