Azernews.Az

By Nigar Orujova

Azerbaijan and the European Union outlined the top priorities of their future cooperation during discussions within the joint cooperation council in Brussels on Monday.

An Azerbaijani delegation led by Foreign Minister Elmar Mammadyarov, the EU current chair Cyprus' Foreign Minister Erato Kozakou-Marcoullis and European Commissioner for Enlargement and European Neighbourhood Policy Stefan Fule took part in the talks, the Azerbaijani Foreign Ministry said.

During the talks, Mammadyarov informed the EU delegation about the process of negotiations on settling the Armenia-Azerbaijan Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, noting the importance of a conflict settlement based on the EU principles of respect to the territorial integrity and sovereignty of states.

Mammadyarov also stressed the importance of the EU's firm stance on the conflict resolution.

Moreover, the discussions centered on future activity in the frame of the EU Eastern Partnership program, energy cooperation, the Association Agreement, and visa facilitation issues.

Stefan Fule said at a press conference after the talks that Azerbaijan and the EU will intensify negotiations over agreements on visa facilitation and readmission next year with a view to their early conclusion.

Within energy cooperation between Azerbaijan and the EU, significant steps have been taken on the implementation of the South Energy Corridor, Fule said.

"The ratification by the Azerbaijani parliament of the agreements with Turkey on the construction and operation of the Trans-Anatolian Pipeline (TANAP) is very welcome," Fule said. "We are expecting in the coming months the final decision of the Shah Deniz consortium on the preferred route of the pipeline.

"On the Trans-Caspian Pipeline, we have confirmed with Minister Mammadyarov our joint commitment to work closely with Turkmenistan with a view to finalize our trilateral agreement, paving the path for the South Energy Corridor."

TANAP project envisages construction of a pipeline from the eastern border of Turkey to the country's western border to supply gas from Azerbaijani Shah Deniz field in the Caspian Sea to Europe through Turkey. Initial capacity of the pipeline is expected to be 16 billion cubic meters a year. About 6 billion cubic meters will be delivered to Turkey, while the rest will go to European markets.

The Trans-Caspian gas pipeline stretching around 300 kilometers is to be laid from the Turkmen coast of the Caspian to Azerbaijan, where it will be linked to the Southern Gas Corridor.

According to Fule, the negotiations on the Association Agreement between the EU and Azerbaijan have gained momentum in the past months.

However, said Fule, "we would like to accelerate the pace [of the negotiations] on certain issues."

According to him, democratic reform and the protection of human rights are an important element of cooperation between the EU and Azerbaijan in the framework of the Eastern Partnership.

"We welcome progress made by Azerbaijan to fully respect its commitments before the Council of Europe, the OSCE and the EU. It is equally important to bring electoral legislation into line with the recommendations of the OSCE/ODIHR", Fule said.

Azerbaijan participates in the EU's Eastern Partnership program, adopted at the initiative of Poland and Sweden and approved at the EU summit in Brussels in 2008. The Eastern Partnership is aimed at political and economic rapprochement of six post-Soviet states with the EU.

Fule also congratulated Azerbaijan on having been chosen to host the first European Olympic Games in 2015. According to Fule, the Games will be yet another window to the world for Azerbaijan.

"But it will also be a window through which Europe will be looking not only at the sporting facilities, but also at the country overall," Fule noted.

Meanwhile Mammadyarov said in an interview with EU Reporter before the meeting that traditionally Azerbaijan and EU have maintained good and close cooperation.

The EU and Azerbaijan achieved positive results on some issues, while some issues need to be finalized in the course of negotiations, according to Mammadyarov.

"On visa facilitation there are still a few issues, particularly readmission, but I believe that next year's round [of talks] is going to be the last one," Mammadyarov said.

Energy is the key element of cooperation between the EU and Azerbaijan, he noted. Gas volumes which will be supplied from the Azerbaijani sector of the Caspian Sea will be much less than the capacity of the Russian-backed South Stream project volumes, while this project is much bigger than the Trans-Anatolian Pipeline, for instance, Mammadyarov believes.

Nabucco is "another intrigue" which will be solved next year, because there are still two options to deliver Azerbaijani gas to Europe, Mammadyarov said, referring to the TAP and Nabucco West projects.

The decision will be made next year by the companies which are part of the consortium, he noted.

Speaking about the Armenia-Azerbaijan Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, Mammadyarov reiterated Baku's stance that the status quo is unacceptable.

He said Europe is closely following the peace process on Nagorno-Karabakh conflict and is actively involved in the negotiations between Armenia and Azerbaijan.

"Unfortunately, we have not been able to achieve a breakthrough so far, but I hope this is just for now, as the conflict is solvable," Mammadyarov said.

The Karabakh conflict emerged in 1988 when Armenia made territorial claims against Azerbaijan. The two South Caucasus neighbors fought a lengthy war that ended with the signing of a precarious cease-fire in 1994. Armenian armed forces have since occupied over 20 percent of Azerbaijan's internationally recognized territory. OSCE-brokered peace talks have been largely fruitless so far.

Armenia has not yet implemented the U.N. Security Council's four resolutions on a pullout from Nagorno-Karabakh and the seven surrounding regions.