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US Treasury Departmentâ€™s undersecretary for terrorism and financial intelligence announces reasons of his visit to Azerbaijan

19 October 2010 13:42 (UTC +04:00)

According to APA, Levey called Azerbaijan as an important and strategic partner of the United States. â€œAzerbaijan is an important and strategic partner of the United States as highlighted by President Obama and President Aliyev in their meeting in New York last month. And my visit today builds on the broad and ongoing dialogue between our two nationsâ€.

â€œThe primary focus of my trip is to bolster US engagement with our partners around the world about Iranâ€™s illicit activities and abuse of the international financial systemâ€, said Levey.

He reminded about the UN Security Council Resolution 1929 and spoke about the meetings he held in Azerbaijan: â€œThe strong measures taken by the United Nations and the global community â€“ including the United States, the European Union, Australia, Canada, Norway, South Korea, and Japan â€“ have demonstrated the resolve of the international community. I am in Baku today to brief officials here about the interactions weâ€™ve had with officials in other countries and to consult with them on ways in which we can work together to protect the international financial system from Iranâ€™s abuse and implement the mandate of UNSCR 1929â€.

Levey said they believed that this was an area where the United Statesâ€™ and Azerbaijanâ€™s interests are aligned. â€œProtecting Azerbaijanâ€™s financial system from the threat posed by Iran helps preserve the reputation of Azerbaijanâ€™s financial sector and ultimately helps attract investment here. With the strength of the measures taken thus far and the growing international consensus behind robust implementation of UN sanctions, we are creating the leverage we need to influence the calculations of Iranâ€™s decision-makers and enhance our diplomatic options. Our ultimate goal is to achieve a peaceful resolution of this issueâ€.