A New US Co-Chair of OSCE Minsk Group Has Been Appointed. What Does It Mean?

A few days after this visit, the OSCE Minsk Group co-chair from Russia, Igor Khovaev, was appointed special representative of the Russian Foreign Minister to promote the normalization of relations between Armenia and Azerbaijan. Moscow reported that Khovaev’s new status is a consequence of the refusal of Washington and Paris to work with Russia about this.

In June last year, Reeker visited Yerevan as part of a regional visit. He then served as the US Assistant Secretary of State for European and Eurasian Affairs. In an interview with Radio Azatutyun (Freedom), he spoke about the normalization of Armenian-Azerbaijani relations.

The diplomat emphasized the need to resolve humanitarian issues – particular the return of Armenian prisoners still held in Azerbaijan:

“The US government has repeatedly stressed that all prisoners and detainees must be released and returned home. We must remember that this conflict has affected people deeply. It is important to remember that we are talking about people who are on both sides of the conflict, about people’s children, their spouses, their parents. We want all detainees to be released, we want an end to mine deaths, we want to see an end to the conflict and a comprehensive solution. This is something that the United States has supported for years as a Co-Chair of the OSCE Minsk Group.”

A year before this appointment, Reeker said that Washington was in favor of continuing negotiations between Armenia and Azerbaijan within the framework of the OSCE Minsk Group:

“We are confident that the mandate of the group is still very viable, it is necessary to return to this process, to revive this process, to resolve all these issues in practice as soon as possible. […] We are ready to work with the rest of the OSCE Minsk Group Co-Chairs [France and Russia] or, if necessary, with others. Our message is that we want to see a solution to this conflict so that all countries in the region can move forward, look ahead, focusing on building secure, stable democracies that can provide prosperity, which is the desire of all people.”

Reeker will not only be the co-chair of the OSCE Minsk Group, but also the US representative in the Geneva International Discussions, American analyst Suren Sargysan said.

“This means that he will coordinate all US diplomatic work in all conflicts in the South Caucasus. In general, American interests in the South Caucasus are predominantly of a broader regional nature than the context of deepening bilateral relations with the three states. That is, the United States is interested in the region as a whole and competes with regional players. The South Caucasus is geographically located next to longtime US adversary Iran, strategic ally and key NATO member Turkey, and historical rival and main adversary Russia. It explains everything. And the last appointment directly confirms what was said above, ” he wrote on his Facebook page.