BAKU: Azerbaijan supports Turkey and calls on Congress to demands

news.az, Azerbaijan
March 6 2010

Azerbaijan supports Turkey and we call on the Congress to reject
illusory demand
Sat 06 March 2010 | 13:15 GMT Text size:

Elnur Aslanov, head of the political analysis and information
department at Azerbaijan’s presidential administration.

Chief of department of political analysis and information under
Azerbaijan’s presidential administration has commented to journalists
on adoption of the resolution on the so-called `Armenian genocide’ in
the US Congressional Committee on Foreign Relations.

`The adoption of decision on the so-called `Armenian genocide’ in the
Committee on Foreign Relations of the US Congress is a vivid
demonstration of `double standards’. First, the difference of one vote
after the recalculation is embarrassing. Secondly, the guardians of
democracy and human rights in the face of US lawmakers come out with
tendentious positions by raising the issues that have not been proven
by any historical facts. Discussion of issues related to the events
that occurred more than 95 years ago in the US lawmaking body does not
promote peace and stability in the South Caucasus region.

Moreover, the legislators who are so actively seeking to establish the
truth must have known that the Armenian side committed the genocide in
Khojaly on 26 February 1992 which can be compared to the worst
examples of killing people. If truth is important for congressmen, why
does the Committee on Foreign Relations not raise the issue of Khojaly
or demand punishment of the responsible persons?

Or why is the US Congress silent on the genocide of Azerbaijanis in
March 1918 by Armenian gangs in Baku, Guba, Lankaran, Salyan and
Shamakhy? Why does the US Congress accept for truth the "assurances"
of the party that declared Amazasp, Andronicus, and Nzhdeh Droz the
national heroes despite their hands are in the blood of thousands of
innocent people? Why did the Committee on Foreign Relations turn a
blind eye to the fact that the rights of more than one million
Azerbaijanis have been violated by Armenia for already 22 years? The
question is whether the activity of some congressmen serves the
interest of the whole US public or just personal mercantile interests.
All this calls into question the sincerity of the US intentions to
stabilize the situation in the South Caucasus.

Azerbaijan and Turkey are not only geostrategic allies but also the
states linked with history, language and religion. Azerbaijan supports
Turkey and we call the Congress to reject the illusory demands of
Armenians.

Elnur AslanovEach step of this kind is a blow to the US ideals of
democracy. How can a superpower striving to export democratic values
and ideas blindly protect the interests of a handful of Armenian
Diaspora organizations and their lobbyists in the legislative body of
the United States? Such actions are contradictory to the spirit and
logics of the US intention to establish peace and stability in
different parts of the world.

Why does Mr. Howard Berman, head of the Committee on Foreign
Relations, ignore the proposal of the Turkish side made to Armenia
regarding joint study of the historical facts while saying that he has
already been for 27 years in the Congress and raising the issue of
genocide?

However, the Armenian diaspora and the Armenian leadership raised in
the spirit of hatred to anything related to Turks and Azerbaijanis
reject the rational and constructive view on the historical realities.
The trump of `genocide’ has become a kind of a bargaining chip in the
hands of those who are trying to put pressure on Turkey. Adoption of
the resolution on `genocide’ of Armenians in the US Committee was a
historical mistake. The people of Turkey remember that the Great
Powers deliberately encouraged the Armenians in Turkey to betrayal of
the country of their residence in 1915. And now they want to use the
"Armenian trump" in their ambitious interests. But it won’t work. The
world has changed. Those who create instability in the South Caucasus
will lose. We should hope that common sense would prevail in the US
Conress.

Today, the picture of what the Armenian leadership is trying to do by
delaying the negotiation process around the Armenian-Azerbaijani
conflict seems clearer to us.

Azerbaijan and Turkey are not only geostrategic allies but also the
states linked with history, language and religion. Azerbaijan supports
Turkey and we call the Congress to reject the illusory demands of
Armenians.

In conditions when the economic situation in Armenia is worsening, the
political situation contradicts to norms of democracy and journalists,
deputies and other public figures are held in prison, the US Congress
along with the Armenian lobby should rather discuss the issues
connected with the reason of such a situation and give a just
assessment to this. Meanwhile, the Armenian diaspora should realize
that by financing the adoption of the resolutions which refer to the
past and have no real grounds, they do not take into account the
future of Armenia. Baseless resolutions cannot raise the economy that
collapsed in period of crisis or create conditions for regional
cooperation. Instead, they will further worsen the poor state of
Armenia. In other words, people cannot be fed with resolutions.

Third, Armenian Foreign Minister Edward Nalbandian who actively refers
to human rights and issues of prevention of crimes against humanity
should be reminded that it were Armenian band formations that
committed genocide of peaceful Azerbaijanis in 1905, 1918, 1992.
Armenian extremists supported by the Armenian leadership killed tens
of Turkish and Azerbaijani political and public figures. Therefore,
before speaking of human rights and crimes against humanity, Armenian
officials should first look into the history of their state¦’

E.E.
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