LAST RESORT OF PRO-ARMENIAN SENATOR
Washington, September 20 (AZERTAC). Appointment of US ambassadors to Albania, Czechia, Slovenia and Azerbaijan will be discussed at the meting of the US Senate Foreign Affairs Committee chaired by John Kerry. Thus, senators will once more debate about US President Obama`s appointee Matthew Bryza.
However, California Senator Barbara Boxer who earlier vetoed his candidacy before summer recess, is going to delay Bryza`s appointment at the request of the Armenian voters.
The editorial published in the newspaper says Bryza became a ”victim of election-year politics and parochial ethnic lobbies on Capitol Hill”
“Mr. Bryza is a highly accomplished career diplomat who has spent two decades working on the Caucasus and Central Asia.. He carries no partisan baggage, and you`d think he`d be waved through the Senate. Yet his confirmation is in jeopardy thanks to California Senator Barbara Boxer`s re-election woes,” it says.
“Armenian National Committee of America, or ANCA alleges that Mr. Bryza is biased toward Azerbaijan and Turkey. As proof, they cite his marriage to Turkish-born Zeyno Baran, a scholar on leave from the Hudson Institute."
The Wall Street Journal claims Senator Boxer is in danger of losing her seat to Republican challenger Carly Fiorina. The Golden State is home to a large Armenian community, a potential swing bloc this November, and Ms. Boxer is pandering for their votes.
“The delay hurts his chances. Even if Mr. Bryza gets out of committee, Ms. Boxer may put a hold on him to stop confirmation by unanimous consent. It`s unlikely the full Senate could schedule a floor vote on his nomination before the campaign recess. The White House has bigger problems than to press an endangered Democratic incumbent on an ambassadorial appointment, and it hasn`t,” it says.
The newspaper indicates the ambassador`s office in Baku has been empty for 14 months. This suits the ANCA just fine. The Armenian lobby would love to see America`s ties to the Turkic world weakened.
“These tribal Caucasian obsessions threaten U.S. interests. Oil-rich and strategically located between Russia and Iran, Azerbaijan has enjoyed close relations with Washington. Azeri leaders view the absence of an ambassador as a symptom of recent American neglect, a view reinforced by Senator Boxer`s typically political and self-serving games,” it reads.
The US-Azeri Network uniting Azerbaijani and Turkish-speaking voters launched a campaign sending letters to senators and calling on them to support Bryza`s candidacy.
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