E. Rubin: US-Azerbaijan relations will be based on democratic values

Assistant Secretary of State for European and Eurasian Affairs, Eric Rubin, said the U.S. will continue a high-level relationship of strategic partnership with Azerbaijan. Speaking on November 14th at a gala event "Night of Baku friends in Washington" organized by the Azerbaijani-American alliance, Rubin also said that a peaceful resolution of the Karabakh conflict will be a priority for the U.S. administration in the next 4 years.

However, he stressed that relations between the two countries are not limited to one or two questions. "They cover deeper common values ??and aspirations shared by us. One of them is the hope for progress on building an open society based on democratic principles. We have witnessed the development in this area, and in the next four years we look forward to continuing to work together in this direction," said Rubin.

The event was attended by some 700 guests, including current and former members of the Congress and representatives of diplomatic missions.

A speech was made by the head of the subcommittee of the Congress for European and Eurasian Affairs, Dan Burton. For a short time they were also joined by the Speaker of the House of Representatives, John Boehner. The guests included Senators Saxby Chambiss and Richard Burr.

The gala banquet with a music program, included performances by the rhythmic group Natig, the dance group Jangee, the mugam performer Mansum Ibragimov, and the winners of Eurovision 2011 - duo Ell & Nikki.

Note that the Azerbaijani-American Alliance was established in early 2012 and is headed by Anar Mammadov, the son of the Minister of Transport of Azerbaijan. -06D-