TRACECA projects receive over €187 milion from Europe
By Nigar Abbasova
The European Commission has so far allocated more than €187 million for the implementation of different projects within the TRACECA (Transport Corridor Europe-Caucasus-Asia) project, which is aimed at strengthening of economic relations, trade and transport links between the EU and participating countries.
Secretary General of TRACECA Mircea Ciopraga said that the Commission allocated funds for the realization of some 85 projects, mentioning that nearly 40 percent of the financial means were directed to support and development of the TRACECA corridor’s transport infrastructure.
Speaking at the Infrastructure, Power and Renewable Energy Investment Conference in Baku on November 16, Ciopraga noted that the investment made in the project allowed to create reliable ports, roads, railways, airports and other important infrastructure.
The secretary general underlined that it is very important to realize the export potential of each member country of the project.
TRACECA is an EU program, launched in 1993, to develop a transport corridor from Europe to China, via the Black Sea, the Caucasus and the Caspian Sea. Its member-states are Azerbaijan, Bulgaria, Georgia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Armenia, Moldova, Romania, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Turkey, Uzbekistan, Ukraine and Iran.
He went on saying that the intergovernmental commission of TRACECA will sign a MoU with the Silk Road Chamber of International Commerce (SRCIC) in the short run.
The document will cover provision of supplies of goods from China to Europe and will increase the volume of trade turnover between the two.
Ciopraga mentioned that the document will become a new stage in the provision of more reliable conditions for the supplies of goods from China to Europe.
Being an international cooperation program in the sphere of transport among the EU and partner-countries in Eastern Europe, South Caucasus and Central Asia, TRACECA is deemed to rank among the priorities of the European Union. The EU support is mostly focused on such areas as improving transport safety and security and promote the changes in legislation needed to improve trade in the region.
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Nigar Abbasova is AzerNews’ staff journalist, follow her on Twitter: @nigyar_abbasova
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