08/01/12 - Statement submitted for the Congressional Record on Azerbaijan - Mr. Speaker, I rise today to bring to the attention of my colleagues a very important matter that our military will soon face; the logistics of withdrawing our servicemembers and supplies from Afghanistan.

Some 90,000 servicemembers, 100,000 shipping containers and 50,000 vehicles will need to be transported out of Afghanistan by the end of 2014 when U.S. and NATO major combat operations come to an end. This accumulation has occurred over a decade and the logistics to drawdown will be monumental.

Adding to this challenge is the instability of what has been the primary transit route which relies on the cooperation of Pakistan. Pakistan only recently reopened the transit routes after having closed them in late 2011. We must have safe, reliable, and secure alternative ways to move our servicemembers and supplies.

Azerbaijan is one of several options that provides a reliable transit route for over 40% of non-munitions supplies to Afghanistan and with the announced closing of Transit Center at Manas (formerly Manas Air Base) in Kyrgyzstan, this route will be ever more important.

Azerbaijan has been a strategic partner and key ally in our efforts to combat global terrorism. Azerbaijan was among the first Muslim countries to send troops to Afghanistan and Iraq as well as provide flyover rights to our military.

Mr. Speaker, I ask my colleagues to join me in thanking Azerbaijan for their friendship and partnership. I hope we continue to work with Azerbaijan to make certain our servicemembers have a safe and secure route for the supplies they need for their well-being while we are still in Afghanistan. It is also essential that we continue to partner with Azerbaijan to ensure we have reliable ways to safely withdraw by the end of 2014.