[Congressional Record Volume 167, Number 198 (Monday, November 15, 2021)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E1235-E1236]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




     COMMEMORATING THE ONE-YEAR ANNIVERSARY OF THE RESTORATION OF 
                   AZERBAIJAN'S TERRITORIAL INTEGRITY

                                 ______
                                 

                            HON. SCOTT PERRY

                            of pennsylvania

                    in the house of representatives

                       Monday, November 15, 2021

  Mr. PERRY. Madam Speaker, on November 10th the world saw the conflict 
in Nagorno-Karabakh come to an end, and with it, the rightful 
restoration of Azerbaijan's territorial integrity.
  As many Azerbaijani citizens know all too well, last year's war was 
not an isolated incident. After a ceasefire agreement ending the First 
Nagorno-Karabakh War in May of 1994, in which Armenia took 
approximately l4 percent of Azerbaijan's internationally recognized

[[Page E1236]]

territory, tensions between the two countries remained unresolved, and 
for good reason--the illegal seizure of these territories was in direct 
violation of no less than four United Nations Security Council 
Resolutions passed the year before (UNSCRs 822, 853, 874, and 884).
  Following the collapse of the Soviet Union, the United States and 
Azerbaijan have maintained robust ties and a strong strategic 
partnership. Our Nation was one of the first countries to recognize 
Azerbaijani independence in the early 1990s, and since then, we have 
worked together with the Azerbaijani government to protect and promote 
European energy security, increase trade and investment, and combat 
terrorism and other transnational threats.
  Azerbaijan has proven time and again to be steadfast partners, with 
her servicemen proudly serving shoulder-to-shoulder with U.S. Forces in 
Kosovo and Iraq. Azerbaijan began its peacekeeping presence in 
Afghanistan in 2002 and was one of the last foreign countries to 
withdraw its troops. In support of the U.S. mission, Azerbaijan allowed 
about 40 percent of all cargo destined for NATO personnel in 
Afghanistan to pass through their country.
  One year following the end of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, I extend 
my best wishes to the people of Azerbaijan following the fortification 
of their nation's territorial integrity, and urge both Armenia and 
Azerbaijan to sign a definitive and final peace agreement. Peace 
between Armenia and Azerbaijan will boost bilateral relations between 
the two countries and ensure increased regional cooperation.

                          ____________________