Congressmen promoting initiatives, such as the recent adoption by the state of Georgia of a bill on recognition of the independence of the so-called Nagorno-Karabakh Republic, act on the basis of their electorate’s emotions, rather than on the US national interests, the former Assistant Secretary of State of the United States for the South Caucasus, the former US ambassador to Azerbaijan Matthew Bryza stressed in an interview with a correspondent of Vestnik Kavkaza.
The diplomat explained that such incidents reflect the imperfection of the US political system. ‘’The Congressmen Nunes and Baladan represent areas with a large number of Armenian-American population. As befits a democratic system, the congressmen support their constituents, who, nevertheless, have a one-sided view of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict. The problem is that the members of Congress have to know more about issues they talk about, and to use their influence in order to balance the interests of the voters with the interests of the whole country,’’ he pointed out.
Nunez and Baladan were not able to reflect this balance. "They have put the emotions of a group of his constituents at the center, although there must be the US national interests to assist Armenia and Azerbaijan in the achievement of a lasting settlement of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict. Moreover, this initiative is contrary to the basic principles of the settlement of the conflict that were prepared by the Minsk Group co-chairs in Madrid in 2008," Bryza recalled.
"Similarly, Congress, in fact, harms the interests of the Armenian-Americans who are looking for a peaceful settlement of the conflict. Such a decision will be possible only when it is based on the three basic principles of the Helsinki Final Act: self-determination of nations, territorial integrity and non-use of force,’’ the diplomat concluded.
