During a briefing, Vedant Patel, the First Deputy Press Secretary of the State Department, stated that Philip T. Reeker, the Chief Advisor of the US State Department on Caucasus negotiations, will visit the region soon. He noted that this would be his first visit in the new position.

"Ambassador Reeker, our senior adviser on the Caucasus negotiations, will visit the region this week. This will be his first visit in his new position. We expect to make regular trips to this region. He will leave this evening and go to Armenia, Georgia, and Azerbaijan. In all three countries, they will discuss the main issues in the region. He will also meet with senior officials to seek ways to help partners, resolve outstanding issues, and cooperate directly and constructively on regional relations in the future," Patel said.

As previously reported by Caucasus Watch, while commenting on the press statement of State Secretary Blinken dated August 24, Leyla Abdullayeva, the Head of the Press Service Department of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Azerbaijan, said that it is surprising that the United States Secretary of State Antony Blinken's press statement on the appointment of Philip T. Reeker to the position of senior adviser on the Caucasus negotiations shows an approach far from the post-conflict reality in the region. Abdullayeva said that Azerbaijan's position regarding the Minsk Group had been repeatedly and clearly expressed at the highest level. "Attempts to resuscitate the virtually non-functioning Minsk Group may result in the USA moving away from the normalization process of Azerbaijan-Armenia relations," she added. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokeswoman stated: "The Karabakh conflict has been resolved, and the Karabakh is an integral part of Azerbaijan. The international community, including our partners, should understand that connecting the talks on the normalization of relations between Azerbaijan and Armenia with the Karabakh issue does not serve normalization at all."

On August 25, Caucasus Watch reported that in the traditional briefing at the State Department, Vedant Patel, the First Deputy Press Secretary of the State Department, commented on the statement of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Azerbaijan regarding the appointment of Philip Reeker as co-chairman of the Minsk Group. Vedant Patel said that the Secretary of State appointed Ambassador Reeker as the Chief Adviser on negotiations in the Caucasus to emphasize our commitment to promoting peace in the South Caucasus. "We are committed to direct dialogue between Azerbaijan and Armenia in a bilateral, multilateral manner and within the framework of cooperation with like-minded partners to achieve a comprehensive peace settlement between the two countries. His selection underscores our commitment to the Geneva International Discussions, where we will continue to hold ourselves accountable to our commitments under the 2008 ceasefire with Russia. As part of his role as a diplomatic advisor, Ambassador Reeker will represent the United States both in the OSCE Minsk Group and, as I mentioned, in the Geneva International Discussions," he noted.