The Political Underpinnings of U.S. Bilateral Aid to the Countries of Transcaucasus

The fall of the Soviet Union, which resulted in the emergence of fifteen new states, is considered the most dramatic and remarkable event of the second half of the twentieth century. Efforts to gain independence involved not only internal political developments and actors, but also each country's adapting to the environment and restructuring relations. (1) The Soviet successor states have tried to pursue policies that would advance their national interests and ensure support from the community. They had to face the fact that with the end of the cold war new and actors would influence political and economic developments. The United States is an important actor in all of the countries. U.S. assistance policies are part of its influence and interests in the region. The Freedom Support Act adopted by the U.S. Congress in 1992, while recognizing developments in the former Soviet Union as a opportunity for a transition to a peaceful and stable order, indicated that the success of the transition was in the interest of the entire community and emphasized the role of the United States in contributing to the transition. (2) It is in the national interest of the United States to see the newly independent states (NIS) as economically and politically stable democratic countries. U.S. policies toward the Soviet successor states are also based on its policy of exporting its identity to the world. The values of democracy and free markets become the central concept of transition from communist authoritarianism and centrally planned economies to Western-type societies. The outcomes of this transition are thought more likely to benefit the United States if it remains engaged as a partner in the process, promoting its national security and values related to U.S. collective identity, as well as pragmatic considerations. Foreign is a major mechanism to achieve those goals. Aid policies also help the United States to build constructive diplomatic, trade, and people-to-people relations in the region. The priority of U.S. interests for both its relations and policies is explicit in the statement of the former secretary of state Madeline Albright in the introduction to the Congressional Budget Justifications for 2001. Albright qualified the term foreign aid as obsolete and replaced it with international programs that America by making Americans more secure, supporting American prosperity, supporting peace, and promoting views that Americans cherish, including democracy. (3) Thus, it can be assumed that in the NIS, the United States pursues its own economic and political interests together with its general strategic goals. Those interests are more obvious in relation to certain post-Soviet regions or states. One such region is Transcaucasus (Southern Caucasus), comprising the countries of Armenia, Azerbaijan, and Georgia. U.S. national interests in fulfillment of the countries' potential as gateways from the Caspian Basin to the West combine such general objectives as advancement of free market and democratic reforms, promotion of peace, and regional stability. U.S. firms are heavily involved in the development of Azerbaijan energy resources (gas and oil). (4) The U.S. objective of diversifying world oil supplies is the key factor underlying its regional policies. The United States views the region as a crossroads connecting East and West, as a transportation corridor for Caspian energy resources. Each of the countries has a particular significance in advancing U.S. interests in the region. Each of the Transcaucasus states has a unique and specific character that determines its role in relations among the regional powers and with the United States. Despite the proximity of the countries and their historical and cultural ties, distinctive geographic, ethnic, religious, political, and economic differences have been formed during the centuries. …