BAKU, Azerbaijan, Dec. 16
By Elchin Mehdiyev - Trend:
Azerbaijan successfully cooperates with all foreign countries, including the European Union, by implementing independent policy based on national interests, Azerbaijani MP Vugar Iskandarov said, Trend reports.
The MP said that Azerbaijan is developing the relations with the EU on the basis of equal partnership.
Iskandarov added that this moment was highlighted on December 14 at a meeting between President of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev and President of the European Council Charles Michel.
The MP reminded that Michel was on a visit to Azerbaijan in July 2021.
“During the visit, Charles Michel and President Ilham Aliyev discussed the issues of trade turnover between the EU and Azerbaijan, additional opportunities for cooperation, energy security in the context of the completion of the Southern Gas Corridor project and the prospects for increasing the volume of natural gas that will be exported to the European market,” Iskandarov said.
“The new opportunities for opening all communications in the region after the second Karabakh war, new realities of the region, as well as the issues of post-conflict development in terms of the restoration of the liberated territories were also discussed,” the MP said.
Iskandarov said that one of the important issues is the energy security of Europe.
“I would like to stress that thanks to the projects being implemented by Azerbaijan recently, the energy map of the region and Europe has been greatly renewed,” the MP said. “Azerbaijan pursues the strong policy of delivering oil and gas resources to consumers via diversified routes. From this point of view, the Southern Gas Corridor, designed to develop the Shah Deniz field and its delivery to the European countries is an exception.”
The MP stressed that Azerbaijan initiated the creation of the Southern Gas Corridor to export gas and make a new contribution to the energy security of Europe.
“A Joint Declaration on the Southern Gas Corridor project was signed between Azerbaijan and the European Commission thanks to Azerbaijan 10 years ago,” Iskandarov said. “Azerbaijan has been actively cooperating for 10 years in ensuring the energy security of Europe.”
The MP said that another important issue is related to the EU's desire to take steps to normalize the relations between Azerbaijan and Armenia.
“The issues of demarcation and delimitation of the Armenian-Azerbaijani border were discussed at a meeting between President Ilham Aliyev and Charles Michel on December 14 in Brussels,” the MP said. “They also exchanged views on the opening of communications, humanitarian issues and other topics.”
Meanwhile, Azerbaijani political analyst Jeyhun Ahmadli said that expansion of equal partnership with the EU is a strategic choice of Azerbaijan.
“That’s why the President of Azerbaijan visited Brussels nine times since 2004. The heads of the EU Council have visited Azerbaijan four times since 2012 while the heads of the European Commission have visited Azerbaijan two times since 2011,” Ahmadli told Trend.
Ahmadli added that Azerbaijan signed or adopted documents on strategic partnership with nine EU member-states.
“Moreover, the EU is our main trading partner,” the analyst said. “Almost a quarter of our trade is carried out with the EU. The trade turnover was about $ 9.5 billion in 2020. The total export volume from Azerbaijan to the EU member-states is $6.8 billion.”
The analyst said that Azerbaijan is one of the key countries in ensuring the energy security of Europe.
“The strategic partnership between the EU and Azerbaijan is based on solid foundation,” the analyst added.
“It is pleasant that the EU demonstrates an adequate approach to the realities of the post-conflict period,” Ahmadli said.
“The EU effectively participates in peacebuilding, for example, when Armenia delivered the maps of minefields in Aghdam district in exchange for transferring 15 arrested Armenians to Yerevan,” the analyst said. “This was Charles Michel’s mediating role.”
The analyst said that the participation of the companies from the EU countries in the restoration and de-mining of the Azerbaijani territories liberated from the Armenian occupation is of great importance.
Moreover, the analyst added that the EU also expressed intention to contribute to confidence-building measures between Azerbaijan and Armenia, as well as to the process of opening communications in the region.
“We hope and believe that the EU will continue to be committed to its initiatives,” Ahmadli said.