Azernews.Az

Azerbaijan and Turkmenistan have settled their long-standing dispute over the former's debt for gas. The agreement was reached at the first meeting of the intergovernmental commission on economic cooperation in Ashgabat on Thursday, the Azerbaijani Foreign Ministry told AssA-Irada. The details are not elaborated.
The two ex-Soviet republics had been facing a dispute over the considerable arrears for gas that Azerbaijan purchased from the Central Asian state in the early 1990s. Baku had said it owed $18 million to Turkmenistan, while the latter stated that the real figure was $56 million with the accrued interest. After the differences emerged, Azerbaijan refused to import gas since 1995. The sides then moved to iron out the discrepancies by calling a meeting of financial experts in 2007 but the attempt failed.
During the meeting of the joint economic body in the Turkmen capital, the parties also agreed that Turkmenistan's President Kurbanguly Berdymukhamedov would visit Azerbaijan soon. The two countries hope that the visit will pave the way for a new stage in bilateral relations.
Azerbaijani Deputy Foreign Minister Khalaf Khalafov, who attended the commission meeting, has told Radio Liberty that Baku and Ashgabat were close to furthering ties and solving the many-year-long differences.
Azerbaijani and Turkmen representatives also discussed in Ashgabat future steps aimed at deepening cooperation in a variety of economic fields that possess vast potential. The sides cited the importance of expanding relations in transport, communications, culture, science, education, healthcare, and environmental protection, and pledged to continue working to provide legal framework for this. Baku and Ashgabat agreed to draft inter-governmental agreements on mutual promotion of investments and create railway and ferry routes between the Baku and Turkmenbashi ports. The two countries also pointed to the need for boosting passenger and cargo transportation.
Azerbaijan was represented at the talks by a delegation headed by Deputy Prime Minister Yagub Eyyubov, while the Turkmen side - by officials led by his counterpart Khidir Saparaliyev.
Turkmen President Kurbanguly Berdymukhamedov received the Azerbaijani delegates on Thursday. Berdymukhamedov said the establishment of the inter-governmental commission was a positive step but noted that bilateral relations were not on a high level. "The Turkmen-Azeri cooperation should be developed and trade turnover increased," he said.
The Turkmen leader also said that collaboration in the fields of energy, transport, agriculture, education and culture was a priority for the two countries.
The relations between Azerbaijan and Turkmenistan have been under a strain since 1997 due to the dispute over the legal status of the Caspian Sea, which holds huge hydrocarbon reserves and valuable caviar stocks. Tension has been particularly high over the affiliation of the Kapaz (Sardar) oil field, which is estimated at some $40 billion. The Turkmen ambassador in Baku was recalled six years ago due to the discrepancies. However, after a new president was elected in Turkmenistan following the demise of the country's long-standing ruler Saparmurat Niyazov in 2006, a rapprochement discerned in Azeri-Turkmen relations and talks resumed on the status issue.
Although both countries support the division of the sea-bed along the medium line, differences on the location of the divider remain.
Azerbaijan has already offered a compromise on the Kapaz field, saying it was ready to operate the deposit jointly with the Turkmen side.
The field was discovered by Azerbaijani oilworkers in the 1980s. Its estimated reserves amount to some 100 million tons of oil.