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Autumn 1997 (5.3)
Pages 65-66
Reader's Forum
The following letter was
published in the Washington Post on July 19, 1997.
Washington Post-Section
907 - the True Facts
This past Sunday's edition
of the Washington Post (July 6) carried a front page story citing
the involvement of several former U.S. government officials in
an effort to promote improved strategic relations between the
United States and Azerbaijan.
The story implies that the sole objective of this illustrious
group is to promote opportunities for themselves or the American
businesses they represent in the energy rich Caspian region.
Except for a passing reference to a report issued by the U.S.
State Department earlier this year which outlines in detail the
geo-strategic significance of Azerbaijan to the U.S., the article
attempts to "pit" American oil interests against the
Armenian lobby.
As a representative of one of the companies prominently mentioned
(but never contacted) in connection with the story, I would have
hoped your writers would have at least taken the time to get
the basic story line straight.
At issue is an arcane provision of U.S. law enacted in 1992 and
known as Section 907 of the Freedom Support Act. This law bars
direct U.S. bilateral assistance, including humanitarian aid
as well as assistance for democracy building and electoral reform,
to Azerbaijan. It was enacted against opposition by the Bush
Administration and is currently opposed by the Clinton Administration
(along with the list of foreign policy experts included in your
story).
Of all the former [15] Soviet republics, only Azerbaijan was
singled out for such restrictive treatment. The simple reason
was that the Armenian lobby in the U.S. was more active and effective
in weaving their story at a time when few elected officials even
knew where the Caspian Sea was. Since that time, however, billions
of dollars from the U.S. and other foreign investment have flowed
into Azerbaijan and other Caspian republics, in part due to the
enormous energy resource potential, but also in recognition of
the emerging Eurasian Transit Corridor linking Baku to the West.
The enclave of Nagorno-Karabakh (which you describe as overwhelmingly
populated by Christian Armenians) does indeed lie within the
boundaries of Azerbaijan, and has done so for generations. The
United States, the United Nations and the Organization of Security
and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE)-all regard Nagorno-Karabakh
as part of Azerbaijan. Azeris and Armenians used to live together
there until the Armenians drove the Azerbaijanis from their homes
in an effort to unite the enclave with Armenia. In an effort
to install a so-called defensible "buffer" around the
region, today, Armenian forces occupy about 20% of Azerbaijan
proper. The occupation alone is in violation of international
law and, according to international relief organizations and
official U.S. government sources, has produced a refugee population
in Azerbaijan of between 800,000-1 million (out of a total population
of about 7.5 million).
The Section 907 restrictions on U.S. aid to Azerbaijan were a
bad idea in 1992 and make even less sense today. They haven't
helped promote either stability or peace and, in fact, have hamstrung
both the U.S. government and American interests in the region.
The American oil companies harbor no ill will for Armenia, in
spite of the fact that Prime Minister Kocharian has publicly
pledged to prevent our oil from ever getting to market.
We actively support the OSCE Minsk Group peace process (where
the U.S. has recently been installed as a co-chair) and firmly
believe that peace and political stability will lead to investment
and regional cooperation that will ultimately benefit all the
people of the Caucasus. Section 907 has been both controversial
and counterproductive. If the U.S. is to play a pivotal role
in a region historically dominated by Russia and Iran, and be
an honest broker of the peace, the restrictions imposed by 907
must be removed.
Frank Verrastro
Pennzoil, Senior Vice President
Washington, DC, July 7, 1997
AI's Web Site-Halfway
Around the World
We were very, very glad
to discover "Azerbaijan International" on the Internet.
It's now 4:30 a.m., and we're dying to get some sleep, however,
we think it's worth staying awake to send you this message.
We are a group of young people studying in Istanbul in separate
faculties. This is our last year of classes, and we hope to go
back home soon.
May God's blessings be on our motherland and with you. Please
continue to be our voice and continue your fine work.
Elchin Azimli,
Kenan Beshirov, Ilham Ibadov and Teyfur Aliyev
Students in Turkey
Editor's
Note: Since January
1997, there have been more than 214, 589 clicks on Azerbaijan
International's Web site. Come visit us at <http://azer.com>.
Click on Past Issues to view most of the 18 issues that have
been published since 1993.
Click on Topics for access to articles about Oil, Baku Diary,
Photo Essay, Diplomatic Inter-views, Quotable Quotes, Just for
Kids and World Class. There are music samples, too.
The following letter was published in the Calgary Herald,
Alberta, Canada, on August 14, 1997.
We Don't Have
to Fear Russian Attack
I'm writing in regard
to your August 5 article, "Oil Patch Diplomacy: Tapping
Caspian Sea oil riches creates a diplomatic nightmare with ethnic
rivals and worry over Russian clout."
The article's analysis of the Caspian Sea's oil riches is an
unfounded scare tactic. You suggest that "a nightmare looms
if the Russians decide that they do not want the vast reserves
of the Caspian to slip from their grip and that the Russian Navy
could head towards the rigs." Your article, unfoundedly,
paints a very gloomy picture of what is, in fact, a great opportunity
for Canadian investment.
There are two main reasons that Russia would not contemplate
sending their fleets to the rigs. First of all, the geopolitical
and military reason is that NATO and/or western allies would
protect the alternate energy supply for the western market, as
well as the Azerbaijan International Operating Company (AIOC)
consortium members' interests-Amoco, Exxon, Pennzoil, BP and
Statoil to name a few. These allies could counter Russia's threat
from their bases in the Black Sea and Turkey-a NATO member.
Secondly, there is an economic reason. LUKoil, Russia's largest
oil company, is also a member of the AIOC consortium [and other
major consortiums]. Therefore, Russia stands to benefit economically
from the development of the Caspian region which is utilizing
western technology and financial support to develop these reserves.
Saeed Kangarloo
IPL International Managing Director
Calgary, Alberta
Canada
Hemophilia Nightmare
in Azerbaijan
I don't know how to
start my letter as it's such a depressing and personal topic
for me. Memories about the horrors of hemophilia date back to
the very first day when a wonderful baby was born into our family,
and I became a mother. The child was a boy. I was 22-years-old
at the time. It was such a glorious day for me and my husband.
But two days later, the child started feeling bad because of
internal bleeding which collected as a large hematoma inside
his head. I immediately recognized the condition as hemophilia,
a genetic blood disease that had always frightened me since childhood.
You see, my brother is a hemophiliac, and I knew what it meant.
The baby's condition worsened despite all the doctors' efforts.
My husband and I became extremely frustrated. I cried night and
day, praying that all this was a dream and would soon vanish.
In the meantime, our child grew sicker each day.
My mother learned about the situation and came to the hospital
and advised me: "You know how much I've suffered with your
brother. I don't want you to suffer so much. Please, even if
they save his life, don't bring him home. Leave him at the hospital.
I know this is harsh and cruel and that it's a sin, but I don't
want you..." She couldn't finish her words. She broke down
and sobbed.
I was horrified and thought I would go crazy. How could I refuse
to take home such a wonderful creature who had already brought
us such joy and happiness just anticipating his birth. Then the
doctors added to our anguish by saying that even if the baby
survived, he would have mental problems. I prayed that God would
give me strength and patience. I believed that my son would live
and be all right. And he did survive. He was so cute and funny
that when I looked at him, I forgot about his terrible disease.
But serious problems started when he was three years old. He
started bleeding internally in the joints whenever he had the
slightest injury or bruise. He had indescribable intense pain;
I can't imagine that even grown-ups could have handled it better.
At night, he used to cry himself to sleep, trying to hide his
tears from me. But when I found out, he would say things like,
"Mommy, I'm so sorry. I shouldn't have jumped off the sofa.
Sorry, that I'm giving you so much trouble."
He loves holidays so much. Every year he makes big plans to celebrate
the New Year, making grand preparations and waiting for Santa
Claus. But, unfortunately, nearly every year, things turn upside
down. He usually ends up bleeding from his mouth or nose or has
terrible pains.
Once he told me: "Mom, I wish aliens would come from outer
space and cure me once and for all." Sometimes, he looks
through catalogs or magazines and sees photos of children playing
like normal kids do, riding bikes and skating, and he tells me
how much he wishes he could do those things, too.
When he was seven, I sent him to school so he wouldn't feel so
isolated. I didn't want to exaggerate his problem on every level.
That's when he had a fight with one of his classmates-defending
a little girl who had been hurt by a boy. The fight landed him
at home in bed, unable to move for a whole month.
Now he's nine, and I'll continue to do all I can to keep him
alive. I pray every day that God will help all the children who
are ill. God has created the diseased, as well as the healthy.
Maybe this is a chance for healthy people to help the diseased-to
show their humanity. I have great faith that such things are
true.
Gulnara Huseinova
Member, Hemophiliac Patients Association
of Azerbaijan (HPAA)
Baku
Editor: According to the HPAA, there has never been any
provision in Azerbaijan, or for that matter, in the entire Soviet
Union for producing anti-hemophiliac factor (known as Factor
VIII and Factor IX) which enables blood to clot. They say that
despite the fact that the USSR invested billions of dollars in
the production of arms and weapons, there was never a single
attempt made to produce Factor to treat tens of thousands of
hemophiliacs.
And now with the severe social and economic problems in Azerbaijan
since independence in 1991, the current treatment for hemophiliacs
is only through blood transfusions-a nightmare of a problem in
itself as there is no serious Blood Center dealing with systematic
blood collection. Nor can the quality of blood which is collected
be guaranteed as there are no reagents to test for communicable
diseases-such as hepatitis, AIDS, syphilis, etc. Nor is there
any reliable refrigeration in which to store the blood. To purchase
Factor from foreign pharmaceutical companies costs about $1,000
per treatment, a prohibitive sum when most families make less
than $50-$100 per month.
As a result, hemophilia has become one of the most burning medical
problems in Azerbaijan. There are at least 1,000 hemophiliacs
deprived of consistent treatment, 55 percent of which are school-aged
children. It becomes extremely difficult to stop both external
and internal hemorrhaging, and as a result most hemophiliacs
bleed to death. Mortality by hemorrhaging has increased five
times since 1993 compared to the previous 20 years (1973-1993).
Contact: Hemophiliac Patients Association of Azerbaijan (HPAA),
Tel: (994-12) 96-41-17, 96-01-89 or 68-34-70.
From Azerbaijan International (5.3) Autumn 1997.
© Azerbaijan International 1997. All rights reserved.
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