Washington -- The United States is dedicated to advancing the “frontiers of freedom” to Armenia, Azerbaijan and Georgia by helping them resolve regional conflicts and build democratic institutions, says America's top diplomat for Europe and Eurasia.

“The issue of whether the region between the Black Sea and the Caspian, the South Caucasus, can in fact join Europe and its institutions is being contested as we speak,” Daniel Fried, assistant secretary of state for European and Eurasian affairs, told a congressional panel June 18.  

The three nations of the South Caucasus region have struggled to build independent states while grappling with three unresolved “frozen conflicts” -- Armenia and Azerbaijan’s dispute over Nagorno-Karabakh and Georgia’s two separatist regions, Abkhazia and South Ossetia. 

“The policy of the United States in this region is unambiguous: We want to help the nations of this region travel along the same path toward freedom, democracy and market-based economies that so many of their neighbors to the West have traveled,” Fried said. “We believe that the ultimate place of these nations -- which are, after all, a part of wider Europe -- ought to depend on their own choice and their own success, or lack of success, in meeting the standards of democracy, the rule of law, and responsible foreign and regional policies that the transatlantic community has established.”

While substantial oil and gas reserves have given Azerbaijan the world’s fastest-growing economy for three consecutive years, Fried urged the country to redouble efforts on economic and political reforms, whose shortcomings have been seen in violence against journalists and other restrictions on free expression.  In another worrying trend, some Azeri leaders have suggested directing the country’s new wealth toward retaking Nagorno-Karabakh, an Armenian-majority enclave that has been strengthening links to neighboring Armenia since a 1994 cease-fire.

“While we support Azerbaijan's territorial integrity, Nagorno-Karabakh’s final status must be determined through negotiations and a spirit of compromise that respects international legal and political principles,” Fried said. 

Progress toward peace may be in the offing, Fried said, following the June 6 meeting between Azeri President Ilham Aliyev and recently elected Armenian President Serzh Sargsian -- a native of Nagorno-Karabakh -- who agreed to continue the peace process overseen by the United States, France and Russia, who co-chair the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe’s Minsk Group.

In addition to the Nagorno-Karabakh dispute, Armenia faces democratic challenges of its own, as seen in the violence following its February elections, Fried said.  Armenia’s strained relations with neighboring Turkey, exacerbated by historical memories of forced deportations and massacres of up to 1.5 million ethnic Armenians during the final years of the Ottoman Empire, further complicate its relations in the region.

The United States has actively supported Turkish-Armenian reconciliation, Fried said, as seen in a series of American-sponsored research programs, conferences and academic exchanges aimed at setting the stage for future dialogue.

“Turkey needs to come to terms with a dark chapter in its history,” Fried said.  “For its part, Armenia must be ready to acknowledge the existing border and disavow any claim on the territory of modern Turkey.”

Georgia has implemented marked political and economic reforms since its 2003 Rose Revolution, but many observers have reported shortcomings in recent elections that suggest work remains to be done, Fried said.  The United States is ready to continue supporting Georgia’s path to reform, Fried added, as well as Georgia’s desire to join NATO.

While Russian peacekeeping forces have been deployed to Abkhazia and South Ossetia since the early 1990s, Moscow has stepped up pressure against the Georgian government in recent years with border closures and trade embargoes; a lifting of previous sanctions against the breakaway regions; a buildup of Russian military personnel in the region; Russian troops serving in the separatist governments and armed forces; and a Russian fighter recently shooting down a Georgian unmanned surveillance plane over Georgian airspace in Abkhazia.   

“We are very concerned about these actions, which challenge Georgia’s territorial integrity and have increased tensions in the separatist regions,” Fried said. “The United States has called on Moscow to reverse its unconstructive actions and actively facilitate with us and others a diplomatic process to resolve these conflicts.”

Georgian President Mikhail Saakashvili has proposed a new peace plan for Abkhazia that has won support from the United States and many European capitals, Fried said, urging Russia to play a more constructive role in promoting regional stability.

“The United States does not see itself in some 19th-century contest with Russia for influence,” Fried said.  “The United States does not seek to exclude Russia from this region.  That would be neither wise nor possible.” 

Fried also urged NATO members to honor their pledge at the 2008 Bucharest Summit to put Georgia and Ukraine on the path to future alliance membership, despite Russia’s continued objections.

“We do not believe that any outside power … should be able to threaten, pressure or block the sovereign choice of these nations to join the institutions of Europe and the trans-Atlantic family,” Fried said.

A transcript of Fried’s congressional presentation as prepared for delivery is available on America.gov.