Elmira Tariverdiyeva, commentator of Trend European desk
The degree of influence of the world Armenians on the political processes taking place in the world is not only surprising, but causes a lot of questions. An end has not yet been put to the peripeteia with the appointment of a U.S. ambassador to Azerbaijan, against which the Armenians are acting with violent actions, as a new history has begun. This time, "the long-suffering" Armenians could not hit the Swedish co-rapporteur of the Monitoring Committee of PACE Goran Lindblad.
Chair of the standing parliamentary committee for European integration Naira Zohrabyan said Sept. 17 that "the Swedish co-rapporteur of the PACE Monitoring Committee Goran Lindblad, judging by his anti-Armenian rhetoric, is actually a full-right member of the Azerbaijani delegation to PACE," Mediamax reported.
Zohrabyan regretted the lack of legal capacity to revoke Lindblad down as co-rapporteur on Armenia.
Although, if the large Armenian diaspora in France take example from their powerful American counterparts, the issues with the European representatives in the region can be solved as easily as the question with a candidate for the post of ambassador to Azerbaijan to be nominated by U.S. President Barack Obama is solved.
A few days later, on Sept. 21, nomination of Matthew Bryza for the United States ambassador to Azerbaijan will be discussed in Congress.
I'd like to believe that the requirements of the Armenian diaspora not to appoint Bryza as an ambassador to Azerbaijan will remain unreciprocated.
But so far everything points to the contrary.
Judging by the problems faced by the former U.S. Deputy Assistant Secretary for European and Eurasian Affairs and a former U.S. co-chair of OSCE Minsk Group Matthew Bryza, the question of the appointment of diplomatic representatives of the United States is almost solved by the Armenian diaspora in the country.
Beginning from the announcement of Bryza's nomination as an ambassador to Azerbaijan, the Armenian diaspora has not get tired to complain that the appointment does not meet the interests of the Armenian side. Why the appointment of an ambassador to Azerbaijan should satisfy the diaspora of the people and the country itself, with which Baku has broken diplomatic relations 20 years ago, is a rhetorical question.
Through pro-Armenian senators, the Armenian diaspora solves much in the U.S. The Armenian lobby played not final and an implacable role in the Armenian-Turkish reconciliation process, in the Nagorno-Karabakh issue, in the current appointment of a U.S. ambassador to Turkey, and God knows in how many more important political processes. The fact that the Armenians of the world are so interested in influencing on the South Caucasus region and the processes occurring in it are not surprising. Surprising is other thing. Why do they do it so good? Why can not Obama achieve the appointment of an ambassador whom he considers acceptable for these and other countries?
Turkey and Azerbaijan must take representatives in the region appointed by the U.S as fully endorsed by the Armenian lobby, must not they? The question must cause suspicion of the U.S. representatives' loyalty in Armenia's unfriendly countries. Obviously, the candidates blessed by Armenians are unlikely to guard the interests of Azerbaijan or Turkey. They will not be fully impartial.
It is still unknown who may be the next one on the list of the U.S representatives objectionable by Armenia.
Moreover, if the interests of the Armenian diaspora are highly regarded on Capitol Hill, one must not doubt in the continuing financial aid to Nagorno-Karabakh, which, of course, allocated to support the separatist regime.
According to the Armenian National Committee of America (ANCA), the Foreign Appropriations Committee of the U.S. House of Representatives approved the budget for 2011. According to it, the amount of the allocated financial assistance to Armenia will hit $ 44 million.
What do we have finally? There is no U.S. ambassador to Azerbaijan more than a year. Of course, it affects the relations between Baku and Washington. The fact that the U.S. has no ambassador in one of the key countries of Eurasia, prevents the White House to conduct its foreign policy in the region.
In this case, the Armenian Diaspora is quite pleased with the U.S relationship and the conduct of the Congress. They are still able to achieve almost everything they require.
The efforts made by the White House to improve relations with Azerbaijan, including the recent visits of Defense Secretary Robert Gates and Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, are not so significant on this background. Despite the partnership of the White House towards Azerbaijan, the U.S. Congress seems to move in the opposite direction, doing everything for Baku to consider its decisions with caution.