MARTHA’S VINEYARD–Mass. (AFP)–President Bill Clinton named Lynn Pascoe as special US negotiator for the disputed territory of Nagorno-Karabakh–a White House spokesman announced Tuesday.
Pascoe’s nomination still has to be approved by the Senate. The negotiator "will engage in systematic consultations with the Russian government and with European allies and their partners to garner their support," the White House said in a statement.
The announcement came as Arkady Ghoukassian–the newly elected leader of Karabakh–ruled out any return of the Armenian region to Azerbaijan.
A diplomat since 1967–Pascoe is currently US co-president of the Minsk group of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe–whose mission is to seek a negotiated settlement for Nagorno-Karabakh. France and Russia are also co-presidents of the group.
Pascoe is also special coordinator for regional affairs at the State Department office responsible for the newly independent states of the former Soviet Union.
In related news–the President announced Tuesday his intent to nominate Joseph A. Presel–a Career Member of the Senior Foreign Service–Class of Minister-Counselor–to be Ambassador to the Republic of Uzbekistan.
Ambassador Presel–of Rhode Island–has served as the Coordinator for Regional Affairs in the New Independent States since 1993 and became Special Negotiator for Nagorno-Karabakh in 1995–with the rank of Ambassador.
Ambassador Presel joined the Foreign Service in 1963 and has specialized in Russian–multilateral diplomacy and political military affairs. He has served in Turkey–France–Moscow–Belgrade (as Deputy Chief of Mission)–and twice in the US Arms Control Delegation in Vienna–the second time as Deputy US Representative.
His Washington service includes two assignmen’s to the Arms Control and Disarmament Agency–service in the European–Politico-Military–International Organizations and INR bureaus–as well as several assignmen’s in the offices of Department of State principals. He is a graduate of Harvard College–and studied at St. Anthony’s College–Oxford University. He is married to Claire-Lise Junod Presel.
