Baku hosts “Azerbaijan-US: Vision for Future” convention
Baku, May 29 (AZERTAC). Baku has today hosted the “Azerbaijan-US: Vision for Future” convention, which brought together state and government officials from both countries, Azerbaijani parliamentarians, US congressmen, the two countries` ministers, experts and journalists.
The event is aimed at furthering the U.S.-Azerbaijan relations with special emphasis on trade, energy and humanitarian relations, while also paying attention to the subjects of promoting culture and tolerance.
The first session of the convention was titled “The State of the US - Azerbaijan Strategic Partnership: US Foreign Policy toward Azerbaijan”. It was moderated by Executive Rector of the Azerbaijan Diplomatic Academy Fariz Ismayilzade and Transatlantic Fellow at the German Marshall Fund of the United States Joshua Walker. Speakers at the session included Azerbaijan`s deputy FM, rector of the Azerbaijan Diplomatic Academy, Azerbaijan`s firs ambassador to the USA Hafiz Pashayev; senior transatlantic fellow at the German Marshall Fund of the United States, former US senator Richard Lugar; former US Energy Secretary, former Governor of New Mexico, and former U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Bill Richardson; the United States Ambassador to Azerbaijan, former Special Envoy of the United States Secretary of State for Eurasian Energy Richard Morningstar; head of the Foreign and Inter-Parliamentary Relations Committee at the Azerbaijani Parliament Samad Seyidov; former Commander, U.S. Transportation Command, United States Air Force general Duncan McNabb; Executive Vice President of Joe Slade White and Company, political strategist Valerie Biden Owens; the founder and CEO of the private intelligence corporation STRATFOR, political scientist and author George Friedman; and Azerbaijan`s Ambassador to the United States Elin Suleymanov.
The second session, called “Energy Security from the Caspian to Europe: the Changing World Energy Security Dynamics: New prospects for the Southern Energy Corridor", was moderated by Azerbaijani parliamentarian Mukhtar Babayev and resident scholar at the American Enterprise Institute Michael Rubin. The session featured speeches by Executive Director of the State Oil Fund of the Republic of Azerbaijan Shahmar Movsumov; former US Ambassador to Azerbaijan Matthew Bryza; non-resident fellow, German Marshall Fund of the United States Neil Brown; Associate Director of the Maguire Energy Institute Bernard Weinstein; Senior Adviser to the Bureau of Energy Resources at the U.S. Department of State Daniel Stein; Director of the Center for the Study of Democracy at St. Mary’s College of Maryland Michael J.G. Cain; founder and chairman of the Global Resources Corporation Mehmet Ogutcu; and SOCAR Vice President for Investments and Marketing Elshad Nasirov.
The third session was titled “Azerbaijan between East and West”. It was moderated by rector of the Academy of Public Administration under the President of the Republic of Azerbaijan Urkhan Alakbarov, and George Friedman. Speakers in the session included Azerbaijani MP Sevinj Fataliyeva; non-resident Senior Fellow at Center for Transatlantic Relations, Johns Hopkins University David Merkel; Assistant Professor of International Security Studies at the College of International Security Affairs Geoffrey Gresh; Azerbaijani MP Asim Mollazade; Vice Provost for International Affairs, Director of the Wendy and Emery Reves Center for International Studies at the College of William & Mary Stephen Hanson; resident scholar at the American Enterprise Institute Michael Rubin; Adjunct Scholar in the Middle East Institute in Washington Alex Vatanka; Deputy Director and Fellow of the Russia and Eurasia Program at Center for Strategic and International Studies.
The fourth session was titled “Eurasian Security and Cooperation: Azerbaijan’s Role in Regional Peace and Stability”. Moderators of the session were Azerbaijani MP Asim Mollazade and Executive Director at Rethink Institute Washington D.C. Fevzi Bilgin. Speakers at the session included first deputy chairman of Azerbaijan`s Parliament Ziyafat Asgarov; former member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Indiana's 5th district Dan Burton; professor in the School of Political Science at the University of Haifa Brenda Shaffer; Senior Research Fellow in Russian and Eurasian Studies and International Energy Policy at the Heritage Foundation Ariel Cohen; former U.S. Representative for New York's 13th congressional district Michael McMahon; former mayor of Houston Bill White; and special envoy of Azerbaijan's Foreign Ministry Yashar Aliyev.
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