Azerbaijan, Baku / corr Trend I.Alizade / Azerbaijan states that it will cooperate with Armenia only in the event of Armenia withdrawing its troops from Azerbaijan's occupied territory. Ganira Pashayeva, an Azerbaijani parliamentary representative to the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE), made this statement at the summer session of PACE during the discussion on a report by the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) policy in East and Southeast Europe, developed by Jean Lemierre, a Spanish MP and President of the Bank.
Pashayeva said that the Armenian occupation of Azerbaijani areas is a factor, negatively affecting the development of the entire region. "Regional cooperation depends on the settlement of the Nagorno-Karabakh, Abkhazia and South Osetia conflicts. From this aspect, international organizations, including the Council of Europe, should intensify their efforts for the resolution of conflicts. Otherwise, chances for the realization of the Pact of Stability in the South Caucasus, mentioned in the report will be at a minimum," she emphasized.
Pashayeva noted that the EBRD supported the implementation of the project on the Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan oil pipeline and the Baku-Tbilisi-Erzerum gas pipeline. "As the report states there is cooperation between the rapidly growing Azerbaijan and the EBRD," MP added.
According to Pashayeva, cooperation between Azerbaijan and the EBRD is at a high level. Huge projects financed by the EBRD, including the construction of hydro-power stations, reconstruction of the State Power Station in Azerbaijan, improvement of the water supply system of Baku, upgrade of the air navigation system, are carried out in Azerbaijan with the financial support of the EBRD. Moreover, the EBRD participates in projects on the establishment of several big banks and separate fields in the private sector. The bank plans to expand cooperation in the sphere of agrarian business, tourism and communications.
"Touching upon ideas relating to the tough economic state of Armenia with the political factors and absence of this country's cooperation with Azerbaijan and Turkey, I reminded of Azerbaijan's close cooperation with its neighbouring friendly countries. I stated that Azerbaijan cannot cooperate with Armenia, which occupies 20% of its territory," Pashayeva stressed.
The PACE summer session began on 25 June and will last until 29 June. Azerbaijani parliamentary representatives are attending the session.