Speech by Ambassador Reno L. Harnish III
Mingechevir Polytechnic University
Mingechevir, Azerbaijan
April 4, 2005

Thank you very much for the honor of speaking to you - the future of Azerbaijan - the students of Mingechevir Polytechnic University. It is with the greatest pleasure that I visit your region and stand here with you today.

As the youth of Azerbaijan, you are your country's future and you face many daunting challenges ahead - as individuals, family members, citizens of Azerbaijan, and members of the world community of nations. But challenges are also opportunities. As you look ahead, I am sure that you want many things for yourselves, for your families, and for your country. You want prosperity, you want security, you want peace and stability. All of these things are achievable. It is a question of how you achieve them. Of what opportunities to take to realize all of these things that you want.

Right now, Azerbaijan is poised on the cusp of great changes. And a time of changes is a time of choices. Right now, you must make the choices that will bring about those changes that you want. Your choices will give you the things that you want, both as individuals and as a nation.

Azerbaijan is on the road to prosperity. It has achieved significant gains since its independence, and you have reason to be proud of these accomplishments. Azerbaijan's economy continues to improve, and economic activity is increasing in the cities and in the regions. The non-oil sector is growing, with development in agriculture and small business, among other areas. Your oil and gas resources also continue to develop, and Azerbaijan is on the verge of great wealth once oil starts flowing through the BTC pipeline in just a few short weeks. You must make wise choices so that your economic prosperity grows and reaches all Azerbaijanis.

Azerbaijan is also working towards establishing security in the region. Your country is a valued strategic partner of the United States, and has steadfastly supported the global war on terrorism. Indeed, Azerbaijan has made important contributions to vital global peacekeeping missions, with Azeri troops serving the interests of democracy and peace in Kosovo, Afghanistan, and Iraq. You are also strengthening your security as you build strong relationships with European and western neighbors, as witnessed by your integration into international institutions such as the OSCE and the Council of Europe, and your participation in NATO's Partnership for Peace program. And you are working to strengthen relationships with your near neighbors to the north, south, east, and west. All of these efforts build Azerbaijan's security, as they solidify your relationships among the world community. You must encourage your country to continue on this path.

As for peace and stability, you face serious challenges. One of these is the situation in Nagorno-Karabakh. This unresolved conflict is a serious hindrance to peace in the region and full development of the Caucasus. It keeps you anchored in hatred and instability. It has led to the displacement of over 800,000 Azerbaijani. We, the United States, are working with you to help bring about a just and lasting negotiated solution to this conflict. Through our participation in the OSCE Minsk Group, we are actively engaged in this process. And, I am happy to say, there has been positive movement on this issue, with discussions between your two countries' presidents and foreign ministers. We all hope that these activities will bring about an end to the conflict as soon as possible and allow Azerbaijan to move ahead in peace. But we must all do more than just hope, we must all work together to bring about that peace.

And that brings me to stability. Everyone wants stability in their lives and in the world around them. But how do you achieve stability? Stability does not come from standing still, from clinging to the old ways - that is stagnation. Stability comes from moving forward. But in what direction? True stability in a country is achieved when its citizens have prosperity, security, and peace. But the citizens of that stable country must also have hope for the future and an active voice in creating that future. Stability is not something given to you. It is something that you create. And how do you create stability? You create it by being an active citizen. By taking part in the your own and your country's development. By helping to build your future.

Azerbaijan has had two major elections in the last two years - the presidential election and the municipal elections. You are now facing another - the parliamentary elections in November of this year. This will be a major opportunity for all citizens of Azerbaijan to show that they believe in their future and that they want to have a voice in that future. How do you do this? Each of you must identify the issues that are important to you. Each of you must ask your representatives how they will address these issues, how they will make your lives, and Azerbaijan's future, better. And each of you must be an active citizen - by asking the questions, by discussing the issues, by voting. That is how you will make your own lives and those of your families and friends better, and that is how you will lead Azerbaijan to a brighter future.

You must also look for other ways to lead Azerbaijan towards that brighter future. You must work to build a more stable and secure market economy, free of monopolies and corruption. Corruption is a dead weight that slows down progress and destroys initiative. You must not let it do that. You must demand an end to monopolies and corruption, so that entrepreneurial spirit and investment, both foreign and domestic, can grow and flourish and build your economy.

You must work to bring about more accountability and transparency in your government, in your educational system, and in all organizations and institutions in Azerbaijan. You have a right to know how your government and your organizations work, and what they are doing for you and your future. To bring about accountability and transparency, you must be active, involved citizens.

And you must, as a country, continue to participate in activities such as the Partnership for Peace Program, which will bring greater security to your region. That is your government's responsibility. But it is your responsibility as individuals to continue to support such efforts, and to encourage your government to actively engage with its partners, in the west and globally.

You must work to build a truly democratic space in Azerbaijan. Such a democratic space allows open and constructive dialogue on all issues that are important to you as individual citizens and to you collectively as a country. Such a democratic space also welcomes freedom of speech and freedom of assembly; and it requires a responsible media that can express many points of view and many different ideas. These are not things that we desire for you. These are the rights and responsibilities that you deserve, as individuals and as a nation.

I am here today to tell you that the United States stands by you as a partner in all of these efforts. We provide Azerbaijan with assistance totaling about 70 million dollars. This money enables us to help you in many ways. We are working to help Azerbaijan's economy move from an energy-focused economy to a more broadly based economy.

We are helping you to secure your land and sea borders and to stop the illegal trafficking of persons and goods. We are providing training and assistance to your military.

We are providing experts to advise the government on how to combat corruption and we are working together on anti-corruption efforts in law enforcement and in the judicial system.

We place great importance on the need for rule of law, which is the underpinning for the legal system, the political system, law enforcement, the military, and democratic institutions such as parliament. We are working to help Azerbaijan establish the rule of law throughout all of these systems and institutions.

We are helping to reform your education system, to promote curriculum reform, interactive teaching methods, and student activity. We are working with you to bring Azerbaijan's education system and standards in line with those of Europe and the United States, so that Azerbaijani institutions can cooperate and coordinate freely with each other and so that students like you will have more choices for education in the future.

We are working with many sectors of the population to build a free and democratic society that lives up to international standards for democracy and human rights. We are working create a freer and more responsible media, and to improve every citizen's access to information. We are helping to bring Internet access to even remote regions of Azerbaijan. Earlier today I participated in the opening of a Regional Library Information Center here in Mingechevir. This center will give you access to computers and to a whole world of information. I hope you will all take the opportunity to visit your central library to use this Information Center and to see the books that our Regional Library Development Progam has provided there as well.

I mention all of our partnership activities to you so that you will realize that you are not alone in your striving to build a better future. The United States stands with you and is working to help you build a brighter future.

Some of you may be thinking that "I'm just a student, what can I do?" You can do a great deal. Each of you can do a great deal. Even the smallest step forward is important. As a great oriental philosopher once said, every great journey begins with the first step. What you can do is to take that first step, and then the next step, and the next. For Azerbaijan to claim its place among the nations of the world, each of you must accept the challenges and make the choices - take those steps - that bring about the prosperity, the security, the peace and stability that you, your families, and your country want and need.

Thank you.