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In 1992 the
Congress responded to Azerbaijan's attempts
to isolate and cripple Armenia and Nagorno
Karabakh by enacting Section 907 of the
Freedom Support Act, a law prohibiting
certain types of direct U.S. assistance to
the government of Azerbaijan until it has
ended its aggression and lifted its
blockades against Armenia and Nagorno
Karabakh.
This law represented a concrete
manifestation of our nation’s enduring
belief in open borders, free trade, and the
peaceful resolution of regional conflicts.
While restricting certain types of direct
government-to-government aid, including
military aid, this law has not prevented
over $200 million in humanitarian,
democracy-building, anti-crime, and
anti-proliferation aid to Azerbaijan. For
more than nine years, Section 907 stood as
our government’s most powerful statement
against Azerbaijan’s illegal blockades.
In the aftermath of the September 11, 2001
terrorist attack on the United States,
Azerbaijan took advantage of a tragic
situation to demand the repeal of this
long-standing provision of law in exchange
for its cooperation in the U.S.-led war on
terrorism. The Congress, under intense
pressure from the Administration, Azerbaijan
and its oil industry allies, approved an
amendment to the fiscal year 2002 foreign
aid bill giving the President open-ended
authority to waive Section 907 despite
Azerbaijan's failure to meet its conditions.
The amendment includes certain limitations
and several reporting requirements for the
use of U.S. aid provided under the waiver
and, in the conference manager's report
accompanying the bill, states that Congress
intends "to review and reserve[s] the right
to amend the waiver language in the FY2003
appropriations process."
The waiver authority granted to the
President undermines U.S. interests in the
region by encouraging Azerbaijan to maintain
its blockades and remain intransigent in the
peace talks. The exercise of this waiver, in
addition to representing a retreat from a
principled stand against aggression and
blockades, sends the dangerous signal to
Azerbaijan that the U.S. will not respond
decisively to renewed aggression against
Karabakh or Armenia.
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