 President of Azerbaijan sets condition for U.S. Secretary of State. United States Secretary of State Antony Blinken made a phone call to President of the Republic of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev. During the telephone conversation, President Ilham Aliyev said the latest statements and actions taken by the U.S. have seriously damaged Azerbaijan-U.S. relations. The head of state noted that the remarks about our country made by the U.S. Assistant Secretary of State James O'Brien at the House Foreign Affairs Subcommittee on Europe hearing on November 15, 2023 were biased, failed to reflect reality and were rejected by Azerbaijan. It was emphasised that the Azerbaijani side took note of the statement about cancelling the senior-level engagements with Azerbaijan and no chance of business as usual and responded adequately. President Ilham Aliyev reminded that Azerbaijan's Ministry of Foreign Affairs issued a statement on this matter on the 16th of November and that Azerbaijan had in its turn cancelled all senior-level visits from the U.S. With the aim of normalisation of the relationship, Secretary Blinken has asked to allow the visit of the U.S. Assistant Secretary of State James O'Brien in December to Azerbaijan. President Ilham Aliyev has agreed to this proposal on the condition that after this visit the unfounded ban on the visits of Azerbaijani high-level officials to the United States will be lifted. Secretary Blinken has accepted this.