[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 152 (2006), Part 11]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages 14605-14606]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




     IN SUPPORT OF MAINTAINING NEUTRALITY WITH REGARD TO THE PEACE 
              NEGOTIATIONS BETWEEN AZERBAIJAN AND ARMENIA

                                 ______
                                 

                            HON. DAN BURTON

                               of indiana

                    in the house of representatives

                         Monday, July 17, 2006

  Mr. BURTON of Indiana. Mr. Speaker, in the weeks leading up to the G-
8 summit, there was some speculation that the leaders of Azerbaijan and 
Armenia might be invited to attend the summit as an incentive to help 
spur further progress on peace negotiations between the two countries 
over the Nagorno-Karabakh issue. Unfortunately, it appears that that 
did not happen; and I am deeply disappointed that the world has missed 
the opportunity this summit offered to help promote peace in a region 
which has been in conflict for far too long.
  Although, in my opinion, a good opportunity to advance peace has been 
lost, I have not lost hope that, together with other nations, we can 
help Azerbaijan and Armenia achieve peace, and settle once and for all 
the issue of Nagorno-Karabakh, which I believe has significantly 
stunted the development of both nations as well as the broader region.
  In 1992, the Commission on Security and Cooperation in Europe--CSCE--
now the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe--OSCE--
created the Minsk Group, a coalition of member states dedicated to 
facilitating a peaceful resolution of the conflict. The co-chairs of 
the Minsk Group--Russia, France, and the United States--have served as 
mediators, trying to work in close and effective cooperation with all 
parties towards a fair and effective settlement of the issues.
  I believe though that our success and credibility as a mediator stems 
from the policy of never appearing to favor one nation's claims over 
the other. I believe that even the modest steps towards peace which we 
have witnessed, are a direct result of this neutrality. According to 
the United States State Department's 2005 Fact Sheet: ``The United 
States does not recognize Nagorno-Karabakh as an independent country, 
and its leadership is not recognized internationally or by the United 
States. The United States supports the territorial integrity of 
Azerbaijan and holds that the future status of Nagorno-Karabakh is a 
matter of negotiation between the parties.'' This has been the policy 
of the United States towards this issue through both the Clinton and 
Bush administrations, and it is important in my opinion that it remains 
the same. Any outside influence, any shift in neutrality can only 
result in a false peace. That is why I am deeply concerned when I hear 
some of my colleagues throwing barbs at the Azeris and attempting to 
lay all the blame for this complicated issue at their doorstep.
  For example, one of my colleagues once said, ``I have long supported 
the right of self-determination for the people of Nagorno-Karabakh and 
greatly admire the efforts of the people of this historically Armenian 
region to build democracy and a market economy in the face of hostility 
from Azerbaijan.'' So far as I know, the Nagorno-Karabakh region has 
never been a part of Armenia. To suggest otherwise, and to suggest that 
the problems in Nagorno-Karabakh are caused solely by Azerbaijan seem 
to me to distort the facts and potentially undermine our good faith 
efforts to see this conflict resolved; and to see peace and prosperity 
come to the people of both Azerbaijan and Armenia.
  Mr. Speaker, I would encourage all of my colleagues to both maintain 
our neutrality in policy, and to also realize that choosing one side 
over the other at this point in time is a setback to peace, especially 
when the side they appear to be choosing may be distorting the facts 
for its own benefit.

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