President Aliyev: Azerbaijan wants to be as close as possible to Europe
By Nigar Orujova
Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev met President of the European Council Herman Van Rompuy in Brussels on June 21.
President Aliyev has paid a two-day working visit to Belgium, which ended on June 21. At the Brussels international airport upon arrival, the president and his spouse Mehriban Aliyeva were welcomed by high-ranking Belgian officials.
They hailed the Azerbaijan-EU relations in various fields and stressed the contribution of President Aliyev`s visit to the development of bilateral cooperation.
Discussions focused on ways of settling the Armenia-Azerbaijan Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, as well as regional security and stability, energy cooperation and other issues.
President Aliyev and the European Council president made press statements after the meeting.
President Aliyev said Azerbaijan wants to be as close as possible to Europe. Azerbaijan is an active member of the Eastern Partnership program.
"The closer we are to Europe, the more opportunities we will have for development, for democratic development," the president said.
"We have discussed issues of regional stability, security and conflict settlement. We appreciate the statement made by the Presidents of the OSCE Minsk Group co-chair countries. We are grateful to them for the fact that they keep the settlement of the Armenian-Azerbaijani Nagorno-Karabakh conflict in the main part of the agenda and use such a prestigious forum as the G8 summit to express their views and concerns. We fully support their statements with regard to the implementation of all the necessary steps to achieve a speedy resolution of the conflict," Aliyev said.
According to the president, the sides also extensively discussed the issue of energy security.
"Azerbaijan is already considered an important partner of European institutions in the field of energy security...The announcement of the TANAP project will create additional opportunities for the successful implementation of the Southern Gas Corridor project. We do hope that the decisions to be made in the near future will create further conditions for the implementation of this important energy project that will completely change the energy map of Europe. In this case all parties will benefit. Azerbaijan will determine a long-term and predictable gas market in Europe. Europe, for its part, will obtain an alternative source of gas supplies from Azerbaijan for decades to come. The close partnerships in this area, in particular, the steps being taken to create the Southern Gas Corridor, are very important for the success of this project," the president said.
During the meeting, the sides discussed a wide range of issues such as regional security, stability and conflict resolution, he noted.
The Southern Gas Corridor is one of the EU's priority energy projects aimed at diversifying the routes and sources of energy supply, thereby increasing secure delivery. Gas to be produced during the second phase of the Azerbaijani Shah Deniz field development is considered as the main source for the Southern Gas Corridor projects.
Currently, the Shah Deniz consortium considers two options for gas transportation to Europe - Trans Adriatic Pipeline (TAP) and Nabucco West. The final decision on the pipeline route will be made in June 2013.
Van Rompuy said the broad and meaningful discussions covered the whole range of areas of mutual interest between Azerbaijan and the European Union.
"Along with other topics, we discussed the energy issue. I have expressed my satisfaction with the significant achievements of the Southern Gas Corridor, which is an important strategic project for both sides...I have confirmed that Azerbaijan is an important partner for the European Union. By cooperating in the energy sector, we have made strides. But we can do more," he said.
The sides also reviewed and assessed key events coming up in 2013, including the presidential elections in Azerbaijan due in October. The EU hopes that these elections will be conducted in accordance with the highest standards.
"Finally, we discussed regional and international issues whereby I was interested by the President's insights and perspectives," Van Rompuy said.
He said the EU considers that stability in the South Caucasus cannot be achieved without a fair resolution of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict and that the EU continues to support the mediation efforts of the OSCE Minsk Group.
He also supported the statement by the Presidents of the Minsk Group Chair countries made last week in Lough Erne on the occasion of the G8 summit.
The Presidents of the Minsk Group urged the leaders of all the sides to recommit to the Helsinki principles, particularly those relating to the non-use of force or the threat of force, territorial integrity, and equal rights and self-determination of peoples.
"The EU-Azerbaijan relations are good. Our long term commitment is to strengthen our relations even further by working towards concluding negotiations on the Association Agreement. With an Association Agreement our relationship can achieve its full potential," Van Rompuy said.
Talks with European Commission chief
The President also met with European Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso in Brussels on June 21.
The parties welcomed the development of relations between Azerbaijan and the European Commission. Good potential for further expansion of economic and energy cooperation was emphasized. The sides exchanged views on the current state and prospects of bilateral relations.
Barroso said at a joint press conference following the meeting that the focus of the meeting was on energy issues. "At the same time, we reviewed the developments in Azerbaijan and the European Union."
"Of course, we discussed in detail the Southern Gas Corridor. We are both very pleased with the development of the Southern Gas Corridor achieved over the period since the signing of the joint declaration in 2011. We have worked hard to implement this project of strategic importance for both Azerbaijan and Europe," he said.
According to Barroso, the Shah Deniz-2 consortium will decide on a very important European branch of the corridor this week and will choose one of the two options: Nabucco West or Trans-Adriatic Pipeline.
"In essence, this is a commercial solution for the consortium. But I would like to emphasize that both Nabucco West and Trans-Adriatic Pipeline represent strategic importance for the European energy market in terms of diversification of gas supplies. Therefore, I am sure that both lines can be built. We can accomplish this by expanding the Southern Gas Corridor with additional resources of gas currently available. This may become a fully viable option," Barroso said.
The Southern Gas Corridor is a project that is close to being materialized; it will be implemented for the benefit of all parties involved. At the initial phase, it will transport 10 billion cubic meters of gas to Europe until 2019, Barroso said.
The sides also discussed the development of bilateral relations in the context of the Eastern Partnership.
"We also discussed economic issues. These include Azerbaijan's development plan and progress on the issue of the country's membership in the World Trade Organization. We are in favor of deepening our trade ties through the creation of a deep and meaningful bilateral free trade zone. And to do this, WTO membership is very important," he said.
Speaking about the situation in the region, Barroso said the European Union supports the international mediation efforts of the OSCE Minsk Group and stands ready to play a role in the search for a lasting settlement.
The Azerbaijani president in turn said, "The European Union is our major trading partner. Our trade with member states is growing. In addition, the Eastern Partnership program provides us with the opportunity to support the initiatives being put forward."
"Azerbaijan is already beginning to invest in European countries. If we look at the structure of our investments, we will see that they are related not only to the energy sector. There are also other areas of mutual interest," Aliyev said.
"We do hope that gas exports from Azerbaijan to Europe will not be limited to the Shah Deniz-2 project. After all, we have more than 2 trillion cubic meters of proven gas reserves...The Southern Gas Corridor is a project that serves energy security. This project will change the energy map of Europe and open up additional opportunities for our country and countries of the region to benefit from economic cooperation," he said.
According to Aliyev, all these elements form the basis for raising mutual relations to a higher level.
"Azerbaijan is interested in that. We want to be as close to Europe as possible. We are very glad to see a similar approach on the part of Europe."