13 December 2002
Text: U.S. Supports Program to Train Azerbaijan Border Guards
(Dec. 12, Vienna: Davidson statement to OSCE Permanent Council) (500)
The United States strongly supports a joint project by the OSCE and
the International Organization for Migration (IOM) designed to train
Azerbaijani border service personnel at the Border Guard Academy in
Ketrzyn, Poland, Deputy Chief of the U.S. Mission to the OSCE Douglas
Davidson told the Permanent Council in Vienna December 12.
Poland and other central European countries "have a great deal of
relevant experience to share regarding their successful post-communist
transition to a democratic, free-market system," he said after a
presentation by Peter Burkhard, head of the OSCE Office in Baku.
Following is Davidson's statement:
(begin text)
United States Mission to the OSCE
Vienna
December 12, 2002
STATEMENT IN RESPONSE TO THE REPORT OF THE HEAD OF THE OSCE CENTER IN
BAKU
Delivered by Deputy Chief of Mission Douglas Davidson to the Permanent
Council
Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
I'm pleased to welcome Ambassador Burkhard once again to the Permanent
Council, and I would like to thank him for his very informative
report.
The United States was quite pleased with the Baku Office's efforts to
bring together the series of roundtable events in advance of the
August 24 referendum. As we noted at the time, however, we did have
several concerns over the conduct of the referendum, which we hope
will not be repeated in upcoming elections. We look forward to the
December 16-17 event to discuss the draft election law.
Mr. Chairman, I would like to express our strong support for the
OSCE/ODIHR and IOM project that will allow Azerbaijani border service
personnel to attend the Polish Border Guard Academy in Ketrzyn. Poland
and the other Central European states have a great deal of relevant
experience to share regarding their successful post-communist
transition to a democratic, free-market system. I strongly encourage
the OSCE and our Central European colleagues to explore further ways
to use this experience to support our common goals.
In a similar vein, I am pleased to hear that the Kosovo Police School
has been expanding its activities to assist Azerbaijan in further
improving and professionalizing its police force. The United States
strongly encourages the work of the Kosovo School and the OSCE Police
Advisor in this area.
Finally, Mr. Chairman, I'd like to address another issue of concern
that has come up at several meetings of the Permanent Council this
year: the unfortunate clashes and subsequent unrest in Nardaran,
outside Baku. I do not wish to repeat the discussion from earlier this
year. I only wish to note that we consider the issue unresolved, and
we welcome the continued interest of the OSCE and other participating
States in addressing the legitimate grievances of the residents of
Nardaran, without prejudice to the legitimate security concerns of the
Government of Azerbaijan. We look forward to a final, equitable
solution for this problem, including accountability for the tragic
loss of life on June 3.
Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
(end text)
(Distributed by the Office of International Information Programs, U.S.
Department of State. Web site: http://usinfo.state.gov)
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