ACCORDING TO AMERICAN CONGRESSMEN "AL-QAEDA" TERRORIST NET ELEMENTS CONTINUE TO OPERATE IN AZERBAIJAN

PanARMENIAN.Net - During the final legislative step in the US Houses of Representatives' adoption of the 2002 foreign aid bill, American Congress Armenian group co-chairs Joe Knollenberg, Frank Pallone and Nita Lowey expressed concerns about the open-ended nature of the authority granted to President by the Congress allowing the President to waive Section 907 of the Freedom Support Act. Congresswoman Lowey said "I am concerned about the inclusion in this bill of an open-ended waiver of Section 907 of the Freedom Support Act. We make clear in the statement of managers that we will revisit this issue next year if necessary". Kollenberg noted that the bill, for the first time included military assistance to Armenia. That is, according to him, a confirmation that there is a new stage in the US-Armenia relationship. Pallone in his speech said that not constructive position of Baku regarding the issue of Karabakh conflict settlement caused concerns. Particularly Azerbaijan not only refuses to lift the blockade but also continues to threaten with war. Congressman noted that the main term for the repeal of Section 907 should be the lifting of the blockade against Armenia and Nagorno Karabakh by Azerbaijan and Turkey. "This point will be introduced next year during regular hearings of the Foreign Aid Bill," said Pallone. Congressman also said that the presence of "Al Qaeda" cells in Azerbaijan was a threat not only for Armenia and Nagorno Karabakh but also for the USA. He said that radical Islamist forces continued to use Azerbaijan as a main base for conducting their operation.