US hopes on progress in the field of democracy in Azerbaijan

The US intends to continue to develop relations with Azerbaijan as a strong, independent, democratic state, stated  the  US Ambassador to Azerbaijan Robert Cekuta  at the event dedicated to the 240th anniversary of US Independence Day. The Ambassador noted that the US supported Azerbaijan in 1991, when the republic declared independence. During the years of independence, the relations between the two countries  have developed actively, and Azerbaijan and the US cooperated in peacekeeping missions in Afghanistan, Kosovo and Iraq.

Since 1993, the US has provided to Azerbaijan $1.3 billion aid, including humanitarian.

Cekuta  called the visit of Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev to the USA  in March this year a contribution to the development of relations between the two countries. Speaking at the ceremony, on behalf of the Government, Minister of Finance Samir Sharifov said that Baku and Washington are developing relations in the economy, security and the fight against terrorism.

He also expressed hope that the US, as a co-chair of the OSCE Minsk Group, is stepping up efforts to resolve the Armenian-Azerbaijani conflict.

Commenting on journalists human rights situation in Azerbaijan, the Ambassador noted  "progress" in this area in recent months. "We hope that Azerbaijan will continue to move in this direction," the ambassador said. He stressed that the United States is cooperating with Azerbaijan in a number of areas, including in three main areas:  security, economic cooperation and human rights.-06D--