Nagorny Karabakh, a region in Azerbaijan with a largely Armenian population, has been a source of conflict between the former Soviet republics since the late 1980s. The province has its own government and is de facto independent.
"Some took it as a signal that the United States is likely to support the independence of Nagorny Karabakh - I think this is an exaggerated expectation," said Mikhail Alexandrov, chief expert on the Caucasus at the Institute for CIS Studies, commenting on the replacement of Matthew Bryza, Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for European and Eurasian Affairs.
Bryza, who also co-chairs the OSCE Minsk Group, announced in Tbilisi on Monday that U.S. diplomat Tina S. Kaidanow would replace him at the post.
Kaidanow worked for the U.S. diplomatic mission in Kosovo for two years before being appointed as the U.S. ambassador in Kosovo.
Alexandrov said it was a U.S. goal to have both Armenia and Azerbaijan in NATO, which will mean finding a resolution to Nagorny Karabakh first.
"They will impose a staged settlement plan which will include returning the seven occupied territories, without determining the status, of Nagorny Karabakh by deploying peacekeeping forces there, preferably not Russian,...to smother Nagorny Karabakh and force it to submit," the Russian expert said.
He said it would be unnecessary for Washington to edge Russia out of the disputed region to ensure that the area remained a part of Azerbaijan.
"We took part in the Kosovo settlement, but who took us into account? Nobody, and the United States wants a repetition of the scenario, and Tina knows only too well how to do this," Alexandrov said.
