AZERBAIJAN-AMERICAN MILITARY CONSULTATIONS TAKE PLACE IN BAKU

Though
military ties between Washington and Baku began in 1997, Section 907 of the
Freedom Support Act stopped the implementation of closer ties. Its waiver
earlier this year enabled a significant intensification of military relations,
and a first consultation between the U.S. Department of Defense and the
Azerbaijani military took place in Baku in late March.

The
changes in the political situation in the world after September 11 have also
touched the countries of the South Caucasus. The “cautious” policy
Washington used to follow toward Azerbaijan and Georgia has now assumed a more
active nature, and has led to the strengthening of American military
cooperation with Tbilisi and Baku. 

Military
cooperation between the U.S. and Azerbaijan dates back to July 1997,
Azerbaijani president Heydar Aliyev’s visit to Washington. A joint statement
“On cooperation in military and defense spheres between Azerbaijan and the
United States” was signed then. But section 907 of the Freedom Support Act,
adopted in 1992 by the U.S. Congress, prevented the full implementation of
this document. Even after its adoption, Azerbaijan was denied US aid until
2002. 

A
new impetus to military-to-military cooperation between Washington and Baku
came with the waiver of section 907 in the beginning of 2002, and the Pentagon
delegation’s visit to Baku. On March 27-28, first round of
Azerbaijan-American consultations on issues of bilateral military cooperation
took place. The head of the U.S. delegation, Mira Rickardel, Deputy Assistant
Secretary of Defense for Eurasia, and Eyvaz Jafarov, deputy chief of the
general headquarters of the military forces of Azerbaijan, signed a joint
statement. The document reads that the two sides reached an understanding to
continue to develop contacts in three spheres:

-
Strengthening relations between the military units of the two countries to
improve alertness;

- Developing the capacities of Azerbaijan's Naval Forces to guarantee the
security of sea borders;

- Standardization of control systems at airports and in the air space of
Azerbaijan. 

The
sides also reached an agreement on the establishment of a joint committee of
representatives of the Defense ministry of Azerbaijan and the US military 
attaché. The committee will deal with outlining priorities in the
sphere of financing international military education and training programs. A
regular session of the U.S.-Azerbaijan consultations in the military sphere
will take place in Washington in Spring 2003, according to the statement.

“The
U.S. is grateful to Azerbaijan for its support in the struggle with
international terrorism. We support the national security, territorial
integrity and sovereignty of Azerbaijan. The cooperation between military
forces of the two countries is aimed to prevent and struggle against
terrorism, ensuring peace and stability in the Caucasus, and development of
transportation routes for long-term economic cooperation”- declared Mrs.
Rickardel at a press-conference after signing the joint statement. 

Representatives
of the Pentagon declared that it will render assistance to the Azerbaijani
military in the amount of $4.4 million. In the press-conference, it was
emphasized several times that the United States and Azerbaijan are just
beginning military cooperation, and its concrete spheres will be discussed
during forthcoming visits of a delegation of the U.S. European headquarters
military forces to Azerbaijan. 

On
March 30, representative of the State Department Philip Reeker announced the
repeal of the ban to supply arms to Azerbaijan and Armenia. The ban was
removed due to a ‘positive trend in the relations between the two
countries’ according to Reeker. The embargo on arms supply to these
countries entered into force in 1993, at the peak of the Karabakh conflict.

In
his interview to the local Space TV, political expert Rasim Musabekov noted
that the U.S. made this decision proceeding from its own interests and needs.
“Their main aim is to secure the capital they have invested in Azerbaijan
and its energy projects in the Caspian Sea. The U.S. has the intention to
create an “Azerbaijan barrier” against Iran’s encroachments in the
Caspian Sea. Washington considers Azerbaijan as a communication corridor and
additional artery if the situation escalated in Afghanistan, Pakistan and
Central Asia”.

Azerbaijan’s
minister for foreign affairs Vilayat Guliyev, noted that the repeal of the
arms sales ban to Azerbaijan and Armenia does not mean that these countries
will start to arm themselves. ”It does not mean selling arms to the
countries in unlimited amount. Most likely, there will be certain quotas”,
he noted.

Vafa
Guluzade, former State advisor on foreign policy, commented that he
“welcomes” this step. In his opinion, the U.S. will increase its presence
in the South Caucasus countries “quickly”, and the repeal of the ban is
one of the links in this chain. “Probably, the U.S. will not be engaged
directly. The main role is destined for Turkey, an 
old and reliable strategic ally of Baku. Ankara should become a kind of
conductor and mediator between Azerbaijan and the U.S.” Guluzade
emphasized. 

It
is unlikely Russia is happy with the intensification of U.S.-Azerbaijan
military cooperation. It is not a secret that Moscow counts on Yerevan as its
strategic partner in the region. The presence of a Russian military base in
Armenia and of joint military units speaks for itself. But taking into account
the existing situation, the Russian authorities are likely to choose rather
flexible tactics regarding this issue, and political demarches are
unlikely. 

In
an interview to the TURAN news agency, Russian ambassador to Baku Nikolay
Ryabov stated that Russia does not worry about Azerbaijan-American cooperation
in the military sphere. “I am not inclined to consider the character of
these agreements as an intensification of cooperation. Russia respects the
territorial integrity and sovereignty of Azerbaijan and its right to conduct
an independent foreign policy. One of the directions of this policy is
identifying partners in building its own military forces”, according to
Ryabov.

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mso-bidi-font-family:"Times New Roman";mso-ansi-language:EN-US;mso-fareast-language:
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journalist based in Baku, Azerbaijan.