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Vice-speaker: Georgia's strategic partnership with Azerbaijan 'beyond economic coop'

19 December 2012 14:31 (UTC+04:00)
Vice-speaker: Georgia's strategic partnership with Azerbaijan 'beyond economic coop'

By Sabina Idayatova

Azerbaijan and Georgia are strategic partners and the relations between the two countries are beyond the scope of economic cooperation, Georgian Vice-Speaker Zurab Abashidze has said, Azerbaijani news agency Trend reported.

Speaking at a reception dedicated to the 20th anniversary of the relations between the two South Caucasus neighbors on Tuesday, Abashidze congratulated both countries on this momentous day, stressing the high level of cooperation in various fields.

Abashidze noted that Georgia and Azerbaijan cooperate on such strategic regional projects as Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan oil pipeline and Baku-Tbilisi-Kars railway.

He said the two countries enjoy historically strong relations and cooperate not only in the fields of economy and energy, but also in the cultural field.

Georgian Ambassador in Baku Teymuraz Sharashenidze said at the ceremony that the strategic partnership between the two countries is successful and has historical roots.

Azerbaijani Transport Minister Ziya Mammadov said that the transport corridor between Azerbaijan, Georgia and Turkey within the ongoing construction of the Baku-Tbilisi-Kars railway -- which crosses the three countries -- will acquire international significance in the future.

Mammadov also stressed that Azerbaijan and Georgia are linked by major infrastructure projects including the project of Baku-Tbilisi-Kars rail line, whose implementation is underway, as well as the Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan oil pipeline and the South Caucasus Pipeline -- which is a section of the Baku-Tbilisi-Erzurum (BTE) gas link.

The minister noted the high level of relations between the two neighboring countries and great opportunities for their further development.

Mammadov also said that during the 11 months of 2012 the trade turnover between the two countries made up $450 million, and it will grow in the coming years.

Abashidze told journalists Wednesday that the relations between Georgia and Azerbaijan could deepen further.

"Soon Georgian Prime Minister Bidzina Ivanishvili will visit Azerbaijan and discuss prospects of bilateral relations," Abashidze said.

He said further, "Georgian-Azerbaijani issues are the most important for us. [Azerbaijan's late national leader, former President] Heydar Aliyev laid the foundation of our relations in such a way that no one can break them."

Abashidze participates at a two-day meeting of GUAM Parliamentary Assembly, which started in the Azerbaijani capital Baku on Wednesday.

GUAM, or the Organization for Democracy and Economic Development, is a regional group also comprising Ukraine and Moldova.

Azerbaijan and Georgia established diplomatic relations in 1992 -- a year after gaining independence from the Soviet Union. In October 1997, Azerbaijan and Georgia became two of the four founding members of GUAM.

Along with broad cooperation in regional energy development, transport, economic and other important projects, Azerbaijan and Georgia have long-standing and successful cooperation in the energy sector. Azerbaijani state oil company SOCAR is closely involved in the energy market of Georgia.

Azerbaijan has long been the second biggest trade partner of Georgia. According to the Georgian statistics body, Azerbaijan accounts for 12.2% of the neighboring country's foreign trade.

The two countries have so far signed about 90 bilateral agreements, with 50 of them associated with economic relations.

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