Current state of the U.S.-Azerbaijani relations is a logical result of the process that continues during past few months, Svante Cornell, a Research Director of the Central Asia-Caucasus Institute in Washington DC told in an interview with the Turan news agency. According to him, Obama administration tried to restore relations with Azerbaijan, as a compensation for the fact that Azerbaijan was not, unlike both Armenia and Georgia, invited to the nuclear summit in Washington.

Commenting on the expectations from the forthcoming meeting of the U.S. and Azerbaijani Presidents, Cornell stressed it does not indicate change in U.S. priorities, “but simply Azerbaijan is on the agenda of the administration”.  He deems that the U.S. Government faces challenge of advancing its interests, including strategic issues, security and trade problems, as well as democracy and human rights.

“The bottom line for this administration, however, seems to be the need for Azerbaijan’s cooperation on transit to Afghanistan. Thus, the administration’s regional policy is still focused not on the South Caucasus and its intrinsic value, but on something external to the region, namely Afghanistan. This is unfortunate, as it means that all the priorities of the South Caucasus itself - peaceful resolution of conflicts, advancement of security, advancement of democracy and human rights - remain on the backburner,” the expert told news agency.