[Congressional Record Volume 143, Number 109 (Tuesday, July 29, 1997)]
[House]
[Page H5992]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
SPECIAL ORDER CONCERNING THE VISIT OF PRESIDENT HEYDAR ALIYEV OF
AZERBAIJAN
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Under a previous order of the House, the
gentleman from Illinois [Mr. Porter] is recognized for 5 minutes.
Mr. PORTER. Mr. Speaker, tonight I have requested some time to bring
to the attention of my colleagues an important visit to Washington
which is taking place right now. Tomorrow President Heydar Aliyev of
Azerbaijan will meet with President Clinton at the White House to
discuss United States-Azeri relations and the ongoing negotiations
concerning the situation in the Caucasus. This visit has serious
implications for our policies and interests in the region, and I am
hopeful that it will be used to further the interests of peace.
Azerbaijan is rich in oil and natural gas resources and there are
numerous United States companies which are actively seeking to assist
in the development of these resources. I believe very strongly that
United States companies have the technology and know-how to bring about
this development in a way that ultimately would be most beneficial to
the Azeri people. But these companies, and their representatives in
Washington, have been pushing very hard to reshape U.S. policies in
this region. I am very concerned that in their efforts to improve the
relative position of Azerbaijan, they would tilt United States
involvement in this very sensitive and important region in a way that
will have a serious negative impact on negotiations which are currently
underway in the region. I have watched with dismay as a campaign to
repeal section 907 of the Freedom Support Act has been undertaken by
our administration and by those with economic interests in the region,
because I believe that this approach is counterproductive--indeed
dangerous--to negotiations regarding the future of Nagorno Karabakh. In
this regard, the House Foreign Operations subcommittee has worked to
provide an evenhanded framework for United States policy which
recognizes the need for objective dealings and for improving the
climate for democracy in the region. If we tip the scale in favor of
Azerbaijan, they will no longer have an incentive to negotiate in good
faith on a permanent solution to the Nagorno Karabakh situation. This
would be a great tragedy, because the termination of the negotiations
brought on by a change of United States policy would almost certainly
bring a return of armed hostilities between Armenian and Azeri. The
world was horrified by the brutality of the last round of fighting in
this tiny enclave, and we as a nation have invested a great deal in
efforts to avoid a repeat of that bloodshed.
As the Minsk Group negotiations on the Nagorno Karabakh conflict
continue, we must press upon all parties that inherent benefits they
will receive from working together and establishing normal relations
with one another. I firmly believe that it is in the long-term
interests of these countries to find solutions that they can live with,
where there will be peace, security, and prosperity for everyone in the
region. The building of an oil pipeline in the region could be a
tremendous positive force which brings these two old adversaries
together and causes them to deal with each other in a mutually
beneficial way. Azerbaijan cannot realize its full promise as a source
of energy resources or as a legitimate player in the region until it
makes peace with its neighbors and develops a better reputation for
fair dealing. Armenia cannot wean itself from foreign assistance or
fully develop its economy until the blockades it currently suffers
under are gone and better relations are established with its neighbors
to the East and Southwest. Moreover, both Russia and Iran stand ready
to fill the political vacuums in both of these countries that will
doubtlessly arise if there are not soon permanent solutions to the
problems which plague them both.
Azerbaijan and Armenia both have everything to gain from better
relations with one another. The United States must be an honest broker
in the region, and must take into account the history of this conflict
in evaluating the posture it should adopt toward each of these
countries, both in the context of the Minsk Group talks and in one-on-
one communications. The time has come for both countries to disregard
the old zero sum game mentality that has been thoroughly discredited in
the post-cold-war world. This would be a win-win situation for both
Azerbaijan and Armenia, if only they will look for creative ways to
solve their problems and work together. For its part, the United States
should continue to push both countries to make appropriate concessions
and to work on internal problems which are effecting their external
disputes.
I believe both of these countries are important to U.S. interests in
the region and we must do all that we can to bring them together, not
only for our benefit but for the benefit of the parties as well. I
believe that the language we have included in the Foreign Operations
bill will bring us closer to this goal by providing for humanitarian
assistance to all needy people in the region and allowing democracy
building assistance to go to Azerbaijan for the first time. These are
important steps in the right direction. I hope that tomorrow when
President Clinton speaks with Mr. Aliyev, he will deliver some straight
talk about the need to compromise and be a responsible player at home
and abroad. I also hope that this visit by President Aliyev will be
followed by an invitation to President Ter Petrossian of Armenia.
Finally, I hope that in the end, the policies we adopt and implement,
and the agreement which is reached by the parties, are driven by
concepts of justice, fairness, international law, and an understanding
by the parties that such a settlement is ultimately their best hope for
the future.
____________________