(MENAFN- AzerNews)
By Abdul Karimkhanov, Day
We strongly support the peace process led by Azerbaijani
President Ilham Aliyev and Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan.
This was stated by US Assistant Secretary of State for European and
Eurasian Affairs James O'Brien during his testimony before the
Senate Committee on Foreign Relations. Similar statements are made
by other US officials. But if we carefully analyze the details of
US policy in the South Caucasus, we can see a sharp contrast
between the statements and actions of official Washington. The
question arises: if the US really wants to promote the peace
process, then why are the States turning a blind eye to the
militarization of Armenia and continuing to provide it with
military assistance?
Armenia has become the largest buyer of Indian weapons.
According to the Indian information resource IADN, the total volume
of Armenia's arms purchases from India in the 2024-2025 fiscal year
has reached $600 million. Also in June of this year, an agreement
was reached on the supply of CAESAR self-propelled artillery units
and shells from France to Armenia. In addition, in July, 10 million
euros were allocated within the framework of the European Fund to
support the Armenian Armed Forces. At the same time, the US Senate
Appropriations Committee this week approved the Foreign Operations
Act for the 2025 fiscal year, which provides for the allocation of
"at least $65 million to Armenia to continue its reform and
Euro-Atlantic integration efforts." However, there is no guarantee
that Armenia will spend these investments for their intended
purpose and not on further militarization. So what's all the fuss
about?
Financial support was promised to Armenia back in April at a
meeting between Nikol Pashinyan and the leaders of the EU and the
US in Brussels. US Secretary of State Antony Blinken then said: "We
intend to allocate more than $65 million in aid from our budget,
which is 50% more than two years ago. We are determined to continue
to support Armenia's democratic and economic resilience," he said.
Few people doubt that these funds are being allocated to make
Armenia completely dependent and to use it against both Russia and
Azerbaijan.
It is worth recalling that after local anti-terrorist measures
last year, which lasted less than a day and ended with the complete
capitulation of Armenian separatists in Karabakh, the United States
began to increase its "support" for Armenia. And recently, US
officials have been visiting Yerevan too often - be it US Assistant
Secretary of State for European and Eurasian Affairs James O'Brien,
US State Department Senior Adviser for Caucasus Negotiations Louis
Bono, as well as Under Secretary of State for Civilian Security,
Democracy, and Human Rights Uzra Zeya.
The American Freedom House, considered a "human rights"
organization, accused Azerbaijan of "ethnic cleansing" against the
Armenian population of Karabakh. The US Commission on International
Religious Freedom called on the country's authorities, in
particular the State Department, to include Azerbaijan in the list
of countries subject to special monitoring (Special Watch List) for
violations of religious freedom. The repeated use of the notorious
907th amendment, which prohibits state aid to Azerbaijan, holding
joint military exercises with the aggressor country... all this
certainly does not reflect positively on American-Azerbaijani
relations.
Traffil
The above indicates that the United States is taking steps to
maintain revanchist sentiments in Armenia. Political, moral,
military and financial support for Yerevan from the United States
increases the risk of escalation of the conflict in the region.
These and other facts demonstrate that official Washington is not
interested in establishing a fair and stable peace in the South
Caucasus. The United States is filled with the desire to become a
key player in the region by ousting Russia. As for excessive
activity in the Armenian direction, this is explained by the zeal
of the Democratic Party to get votes from the Armenian lobby. So
the United States is pursuing exclusively its own interests and
this reveals the sharp differences between the statements of
official Washington and its actions.
It is obvious that such "activity" of the Americans in recent
months is aimed at pressuring Baku to abandon the condition of
excluding from the Constitution of Armenia the provisions that
contain territorial claims to Azerbaijan. It seems that the US has
begun to act in the South Caucasus in exactly the same way as
Macron's France. Such a policy creates obstacles to the process of
normalization of Armenian-Azerbaijani relations. And it is
precisely because of this that it is still impossible to achieve
permanent peace and stability in the South Caucasus.
But the fact is that it is impossible to influence Azerbaijan,
and it is impossible to put pressure on the position of the leading
state of the South Caucasus. Azerbaijan acts within the framework
of international legal norms and implements an independent foreign
policy based on national interests. Azerbaijan must be taken into
account, and the position of Azerbaijan must be taken into account.
Acceptance of new realities in the South Caucasus is the fate of
every country, and the United States is no exception.
Abdul Karimkhanov is the Editor-in-Chief, of Day, the
Russian-language news website in Azerbaijan.
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