State makes headlines in Azerbaijan

Sunday, February 24, 2013

— With no explanation, the Arkansas Senate earlier this month approved a resolution to recognize “the many contributions made by citizens of the Republic of Azerbaijan” and indicate that it’s in Arkansas’ best interest to promote relationships with the people of that nation, which declared its independence from the Soviet Union in 1991.

The resolution’s first five paragraphs talk about “the 21st anniversary of the Khojaly Massacre,” and blames Armenian and Russian troops for slaughtering innocent civilians.

Soon after the vote, Azerbaijan’s Embassy in the U.S. posted an article on its website titled “Senate of Arkansas recognizes Khojaly tragedy.”

According to the embassy’s website, the Little Rock vote “became the guarantee of full recognition of the Khojaly genocide by the parliament of Arkansas.”

Armenia and Azerbaijan are bitter enemies. They had a lengthy war after the fall of the Soviet Union; the Azerbaijan Embassy’s website prominently devotes a section to what it calls “Aggression by Armenia.”

Now, the Azerbaijan media and the Azerbaijan government are portraying Arkansas as an ally in the conflict.

The Khojaly resolutions were sponsored or co-sponsored by three lawmakers who had accepted trips to Azerbaijan.

The Arkansas vote, and a similar vote by the Romanian Parliament, are signs “that the international community has begun to understand the situation,” Azerbaijan Foreign Ministry spokesman Elman Abdullayev said, according to Azer News, a daily newspaper there.

“Armenia itself is well aware that it will fail to escape responsibility for these acts, genocide, which killed hundreds of Azerbaijani civilians,” the article said, paraphrasing the government spokesman.

According to a 1993 U.S. State Department report, there was “abuse committed by both sides in the conflict between Azerbaijani and Armenian forces in and around Nagorno-Karabakh. Both sides took hostages, tortured prisoners, created refugees and displaced persons, targeted civilian locations, killed civilians, and carried out summary executions.

“The most significant single attack on civilians was the massacre by Armenians of at least 600 Azerbaijani civilians after the fall of Khojaly on February 25-26 [1992]. The introduction of more powerful weapons, including missiles and tactical aircraft, escalated the conflict and increased its destructiveness.”

Arkansas Sen. Bryan King, R-Green Forest, said in an interview that he agreed to sponsor the resolution drafted by state Rep. Jonathan Barnett, R-Siloam Springs, whose similar resolutioncleared the House earlier this month.

“They have been an ally for us over there in that part of the world, which is extremely good for the United States,” said King, whose trip to Turkey was paid in 2010 in part by The Institute of Interfaith Dialog.

The institute is a nonprofit organization with the primary goal of helping unite communities to promote compassion, cooperation, partnership and community service through interfaith dialogue and conversation, according to its website.

King said he didn’t intend to take sides in Azerbajian’s struggles with Armenia bysponsoring Senate Resolution 6, and referred questions to Barnett.

Barnett said his House Resolution 1004 is designed to recognize the United States’ relationship with Azerbaijan.

“It’s just diplomatic and common courtesy,” he said.

Barnett said Armenia andAzerbaijan have had their own small civil war, and “we aren’t particularly trying to take sides.”

He noted state lawmakers in other states, including New Jersey, New Mexico and Texas, have adopted similar resolutions.

Barnett is one of several lawmakers who reported that the Turquoise Council of Americans and Eurasians of Little Rock paid for at least part of his expenses to the U.S., Turkey and Azerbaijan convention in Washington, D.C., in April and to Turkey and Azerbaijan for a U.S. diplomatic exchange in May.

The council paid for $685 of Barnett’s expenses in Washington and $2,152 of his expenses in Turkey and Azerbaijan.

The other lawmakers, who reported the council paid for at least part of their expenses last year, include state Reps. Ann Clemmer, R-Benton, Andrea Lea, R-Russellville, and Karen Hopper, R-Mountain Home and Sens. Jimmy Jeffress, D-Crossett, and Jim Luker, D-Wynne.

Sen. David Burnett, DOsceola, said he will file his report soon to show that the council paid his expenses to Washington last year. He said he didn’t go to Turkey and Azerbaijan last year.

The council’s mission is to promote the cultural, educational, academic, business, social and arts relations, and to organize events and activities to unite the American and Turkish, Turkic and Eurasian communities within the U.S., according to its website.

Barnett said Azerbaijan was added to the council’s annual exchange trip to Turkey last year because “the Turkish people are trying to enlarge their focus and enlarge their cultural community and Azerbaijan is their neighbor,” and both countries are allies of the United States.

“Azerbaijan has only been an independent country with freedoms and independence and respecting human rights for 20 years, and they are starving for relationships with the United States, and they depend on the United States for part of their future freedom and for their national security,” he said.

Barnett estimated that more than 150 state lawmakers were on the trip to Turkey and Azerbaijan last year, including lawmakers from Louisiana, Oklahoma and Texas.

Front Section, Pages 1 on 02/24/2013