Azerbaijan, Baku, August 13 / Trend E. Tariverdiyeva /
Experienced and well-known diplomat Matthew Bryza's possible appointment as U.S. ambassador to Azerbaijan will be a signal of importance of Azerbaijani strategic role in Washington, experts said.
"I think that if Matthew Bryza is appointed ambassador to Azerbaijan, it will more strengthen cooperation and partnership between Baku and Washington," chairman of Azerbaijani Democratic Reforms Party, MP, Asim Mollazade, told Trend .
In early June, Foreign Policy Magazine reported that the U.S. Congress holds informal consultations on the possibility of appointing Bryza as a U.S. ambassador to Azerbaijan.
"The question on my appointment as an ambassador to Azerbaijan has not been decided yet," Bryza said at a briefing for journalists in Baku on August 12.
He added that he would continue his work in the Caucasus with pleasure, but this is decided by his leaders.
The period of his position as a co-chairman of the OSCE Minsk Group, which deals with the settlement of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, will conclude in September.
Experts said that such significant figure Bryza's appointment ambassador to Azerbaijan will positively affect most of processes in the region.
Russian analyst on the CIS countries, Vladimir Zharihin, said that famous and experienced diplomat Bryza's appointment ambassador to Azerbaijan reflects U.S significance attached towards Azerbaijan.
Asim Mollazade said that Bryza has great experience in U.S relations with Azerbaijan. MP said that Bryza participated in promotion and realization of energy contracts, such as Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan, for a long time. "Matthew Bryza contributed much in successful realization of these projects by his energy and activity," Mollazade said.
Bryza, being assistant secretary of state on South Caucasus, actively participated in solving regional conflicts for a long time, he said.
"He contributed much to develop relations between Azerbaijan and the USA," Mollazade said.
Armenian political scientist Richard Giragosian said there seems to be a need to put a figure of Bryza's stature in the post, reflected his knowledge, contacts and visibility in dealing with the region.
"This appointment reflects not only Azerbaijan's strategic significance for the U.S., but is also tied to the recent warming of relations between Baku and Moscow, Giragosian told Trend via e-mail. Thus, Bryza offers Washington a chance have a high-profile diplomat, with extensive experience, to fill this sensitive post."
Giragosian said that there is a need to name a new US ambassador in Baku quickly.
"Too much is happening, in terms of both regional developments and in light of the OSCE's Minsk Group diplomatic effort to mediate the Nagorno-Karabakh issue, to have the sat remain vacant for too long," Giragosian said.
European expert on Caucasus Lichinia Simao said that Mathew Bryza's possible appointment as US ambassador to Azerbaijan comes as natural choice, taking into consideration his professional path, from Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for European and Eurasian Affairs to co-chair of the OSCE Minsk Group and advisor on US Caspian Basin energy policy.
Bryza is probably one of the most well informed U.S experts on the South Caucasus, has developed close relations with the regional leaderships (including in Moscow) and his possible appointment to the U.S embassy in Baku could mean a reinforced proximity with political leaders which he knows very well, and to whom Bryza has become a familiar face, expert on South Caucasus, a PhD candidate at the University of Coimbra, Simao, told Trend via E-mail.
Other Azerbaijani political scientist, Tofig Abbasov, said that Matthew Bryza has certain active role in U.S-Azerbaijani relations, controls situation in forming energy market in the Caspian region.
He will be able to play more significant role as U.S ambassador to Azerbaijan as extraordinary and plenipotentiary ambassador's statements sometimes are more significant than special representative's position, Abbasov said.
Political scientist said that Bryza is called as pro-Azerbaijani politician in Armenia as his last statements and appreciations are coincide with official Yerevan's position.
"I would not like to comment Armenian figures as it is thankless matter. But one should not doubt that Bryza is real U.S diplomat and observes U.S interests," expert of Lider-TV analytic group, Abbasov, told Trend .
Bryza is not last person in Washington's hierarchy, deputy director of the Institute of CIS countries, Zharihin, told Trend over phone from Moscow.
"It is nice that Bryza knowing situation of Nagorno-Karabakh settlement well does not wander from taking decisions on this problem," he said.
Russian expert Azer Mursaliyev said that it is not worth overestimating role of ambassador to such a country as Azerbaijan.
"Role of ambassador is likely to be significant while the country is on geopolitical backyard. But Azerbaijan is in compact sphere of interests not only for the USA but for other regional players," editor-in-chief of Kommersant daily, Mursaliyev, told Trend over phone from Moscow.
Political scientist said that there is no special significance for Department of State, the Pentagon and different U.S corporations when ambassador is not only source of information and contacts.
Observers spoke about possible reaction of Moscow on Bryza's appointment ambassador to Azerbaijan.
Simao said that some concern has been expressed about Russia's reaction to Bryza's possible appointment to Baku, since he has been particularly close to the Georgian leadership.
"How far this might harm Azerbaijan's stand with Moscow is harder to assess, but I would say that Baku has developed its own approach to Moscow and the U.S ambassador to Baku will have a limited impact in these bilateral relations," Simao said.
Overall, Bryza will certainly look to continue his diplomatic career after the war in Georgia in 2008, drew a violent blow on his personal achievements in Georgia.
Being placed in Baku and further developing his links to the energy sector fall into the interests of Azerbaijan and U.S foreign policy," Simao said.