Baku condemns US bill seeking sanctions on Azeri officials

The chair of the US Helsinki Commission (aka Commission on Security and Cooperation in Europe), Congressman Chris Smith, introduced a bill titled "The Azerbaijan Democracy Act" at a meeting of the commission on 16 December.

Azerbaijani Foreign Ministry spokesman Hikmat Haciyev said that the bill was anti-Azerbaijani in nature and aimed to "question the successful cooperation between Azerbaijan and the USA in the fields of energy, fight against terrorism, and economy," Turan said.

"The bill proves once again that projects like the Baku-Tbilisi-Kars [railway to link Azerbaijan with Turkey via Georgia], TAP/TANAP [pipelines to transport gas to Europe bypassing Russia], and the restoration of the Silk Road seriously worry certain anti-Azerbaijani circles," Turan quoted Haciyev as saying. The spokesman also said that Congressman Chris Smith was known for his pro-Armenian stance, Turan said.

Haciyev described as unacceptable "claims" voiced in the bill about human rights violations and lack of media freedom in Azerbaijan, privately-owned Baku-based ANS TV said on 17 December.