Azerbaijan, Baku, Dec. 17 / Trend News E.Ostapenko /
By allocating humanitarian aid to the breakaway Nagorno-Karabakh region, the U.S. Congress is exposing itself to criticism, British NGO LINKS Executive Director Dennis Sammut said.
"That is why it is important that in future, and until the Karabakh problem is resolved, such assistance should be extended in a rationalized manner to all unrecognized entities with clear guidelines for its use and a transparent way of delivery," Sammut wrote Trend News in an e-mail.
The U.S. House of Representatives and the Senate approved a bill on the general appropriations for the 2010 fiscal year, according to which assistance to Nagorno-Karabakh will be allocated to the amount of $8 million. Any restrictions on the implementation of programs in Karabakh have been removed.
The U.S. has provided humanitarian assistance to Karabakh for over 10 years. However, the expert said this does not mean the U.S. will in the future recognize Karabakh's independence.
The conflict between the two South Caucasus countries began in 1988 when Armenia made territorial claims against Azerbaijan. Armenian armed forces have occupied 20 percent of Azerbaijan since 1992, including the Nagorno-Karabakh region and 7 surrounding districts.
Armenia has not yet implemented the U.N. General Assembly's resolutions on the liberation of the Nagorno-Karabakh region and the occupied territories.
According to Sammut, the question of which policies should be used toward unrecognized and self-proclaimed states is still under discussion by the international community.
"The policy of isolation is always very difficult to put into practice and in any case has been proven to be ineffective," he said. "This discussion is going on not only with regards to Karabakh, but also with regards to Abkhazia and South Ossetia, and other similar situations."
Azerbaijan and Armenia signed a ceasefire agreement in 1994. The co-chairs of the OSCE Minsk Group - Russia, France, and the U.S. - are currently holding the peace negotiations.
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