Baku, Azerbaijan, Nov. 7
By Temkin Jafarov - Trend:
Azerbaijan can become a bridge between Iran and the West to improve the efficiency of negotiations on nuclear program and policy, as well as power engineering, member of the Research Center of the Iranian Parliament Jalil Jafari told Trend Nov. 6.
He was commenting on Iranian President Hassan Rouhani's upcoming visit to Azerbaijan. Jafari said that Azerbaijan maintains good relations with Iran and the West.
"Currently, Iran and the US are discussing nuclear issues," he said. "Azerbaijan can play a crucial role in bringing together the positions of the sides, as it has a great potential."
Iran and the P5+1 group decided to agree on a document by July 20, 2014 that guarantees the peaceful nature of Iran's nuclear program in exchange for lifting the country's international sanctions in Geneva in November 2013. Then the terms of coordinating the document were postponed for November 24.
"Azerbaijan's territory is very important not only for Iran, but also the West in terms of power engineering, foreign policy, and geography," he said. "Azerbaijan can serve as a bridge between Iran and the West in terms of electric power engineering, oil and gas transit."
President Rouhani will visit Azerbaijan on November 12. During the visit, ten documents will be signed.
Jafari said that President Rouhani's priority is the development of relations with neighboring countries.
"The economic development of the region is important for all," he said. "So, the regional countries must solve the problems together."
Jafari also said that Azerbaijan is an important country for Iran in terms of power engineering.
Around 1.2 million cubic meters of gas are exported from Azerbaijan to Iran daily as part of the swap transactions to provide the Nakhchivan Autonomous Republic.
In 2010, the daily swap of 70,000-90,000 barrels of oil between Iran and other Caspian states came to a halt by Iranian side. At that time, unofficial sources said Iran had decided to increase the swap fee from $1.1 to $5.5 per barrel.
The Islamic Republic swapped totally 254 million barrels of crude and got a sum of $880 million in transit premiums between 1997and 2009.