Robert Cekuta: Both sides worked hard to make happen Azerbaijani President's USA trip

Baku. 15 April. REPORT.AZ/ 'In their remarks the Secretary and the Vice President mentioned the Southern Gas Corridor, but we also talked about steps Azerbaijan is taking to diversify and strengthen its economy.'

Report informs, the United States Ambassador to Azerbaijan Rober F.Cekuta has said commenting on the visit of Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev to the USA. 

'President Ilham Aliyev had a very good trip to the United States, it was a trip that both sides worked hard to make happen, and from our point of view, it was a very positive visit. It was a successful visit', the US Ambassador said.

'There was discussion about bringing investment to Azerbaijan, and the “soft infrastructure” that’s needed to attract investments and grow the economy. But I think one thing gets lost for many Azerbaijanis, is that for parts of the United States the rise and fall of oil prices also has a very direct impact. We can share some of that experience, and we can also learn from Azerbaijan, because with economics it’s a two-way street. What each country goes through, other countries learn from. That was an important part of the discussions that we had in Washington', he said.

On April 2nd, a bloody escalation, erupted in Nagorno-Karabakh and that fighting, ended up with signing of ceasefire following a telephone call from Russian President to both the Presidents of Azerbaijan and Armenia. Robert F.Cekuta told about how he sees the future of resolution of the conflict: "I know Ambassador Warlick discussed this when he was here last week, and I would say a couple of things.First of all, the United States has long talked about a broad vision of a Europe whole, free and at peace. If that’s our goal then we have to be looking at the full range of issues. We can’t have that Europe whole, free and at peace when there are tears in the fabric. I’ve known Ambassador Warlick for a long time and I’ve worked with him closely and have seen that he has worked very hard to try to move this issue forward as one of the Minsk Group co-chairs, to help find that comprehensive settlement. And you saw the statements out of the meetings during the Summit in Washington and you’ve seen the subsequent statements about the situation that highlight the importance the United States places on finding a resolution of the conflict."

'Right now the important thing is that both sides scrupulously, strictly adhere to the ceasefire and work with the Minsk Group, with the co-chairs, to find a way forward to a comprehensive settlement. Ambassador Warlick when he was here last week noted the commitment by President Aliyev and President Sargsyan to the ceasefire. We need to see that, and we need to be seeing further steps along those lines", the ambassador added.