Ambassador: "Prospects of Greek-Azerbaijani cooperation are better than ever"
By Ayya Lmahamad
"Prospects of the Greek-Azerbaijani cooperation are better than ever," Greek Ambassador Nikolaos Piperigkos told Azernews in an exclusive comment.
The ambassador answered Azernews’ questions on the sidelines of the opening of the Greek Research and Culture Center at the Azerbaijani University of Languages on October 19.
“Prospects of Greek-Azerbaijani cooperation are better than ever. We are doers. After TAP we went together with IGB and more is to come,” he said.
The ambassador stated that Greece is looking forward to expanding cooperation with Azerbaijan in the energy sector.
Noting that the IGB is a milestone project, he mentioned that Greece will consider increasing the supply of Azerbaijani gas via the pipeline in the future.
Nikolaos Piperigkos also stated that energy is the most developed sector of cooperation between the two countries, emphasizing that Greece and Azerbaijan are strategic energy partners.
“Greece receives through a long-term PSA, 1 billion cubic meters of Azerbaijani natural gas that corresponds to around 15 percent of our gas consumption. This is a considerable contribution to our energy security in times of unprecedented geopolitical volatility,” he said.
Moreover, answering Azernews’ question about the establishment of the Greek Research and Culture Center, the ambassador stated that it could be a milestone in the development of good relations between Greece and Azerbaijan.
“This, as a center for culture and civilization, is very important because it is culture and education that bring all people together. And this could be a milestone in the development of good relations between Greece and Azerbaijan. It is the second center of the Greek language here in Baku, the first was at Baku Slavic University, and now it is at the Azerbaijan University of Languages. It is something that we are very happy to see in friendly Azerbaijan and this really helps with a lot of possibilities, for example, in organizing seminars and so on, as well as to serve Azerbaijani students that love Greece,” he said.
Diplomatic relations between the two countries were established in May 1992. The embassy of Azerbaijan in the Hellenic Republic has been operating since April 16, 2004. The embassy of the Hellenic Republic in Azerbaijan was established on May 27, 1993.
In total, twenty-four documents were signed between Azerbaijan and Greece. The trade turnover between the two countries amounted to $435.7 million in 2021.
To note, the IGB gas pipeline is designed to connect the Greek national gas transmission system (DESFA S.A.) and the Trans-Adriatic gas pipeline (TAP AG) in the area of Komotini (Greece), and with the Bulgarian gas transmission system (Bulgartransgaz EAD) in the area of Stara Zagora. The total length of the gas pipeline is 182 km, the diameter of the pipe is 32'', and a design capacity of up to 3 billion m3/year in the direction of Greece-Bulgaria.
The opening ceremony of the Interconnector Greece-Bulgaria was held in Komotini on July 8, while a ceremony to inaugurate the (IGB) was held in Bulgaria on October 1.
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Ayya Lmahamad is AzerNews’ staff journalist, follow her on Twitter: @AyyaLmahamad
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