Azerbaijan and NATO review energy security
BAKU, Azerbaijan, April 14 (UPI) -- Azerbaijan and NATO are holding discussions about increasing cooperation in the field of energy security.
Turan news agency reported April 11 that increasing cooperation between Azerbaijan and NATO was reviewed during a meeting between Azerbaijani Foreign Minister Elmar Mamedyarov and NATO's General Secretary in South Caucasus and Central Asia special representative Robert Simmons.
According to a statement from the Foreign Ministry's press office, Mamedyarov said that while in Washington last week he explored possibilities of increased Azerbaijani-NATO cooperation on issues related to energy security.
A high priority was the 1,092-mile-long, $3.6 billion Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan pipeline, underwritten by a consortium of Western companies, which is due to become fully operational later this year.
Simmons "highly" rated Azerbaijan's cooperation in NATO's Plan of Individual Partnership relationship with NATO.
If Azerbaijan is to achieve its dream of eventually joining NATO, Simmons stressed, reforms must be implemented in several areas and civilian controls must be placed on the country's armed forces.
Turan news agency reported April 11 that increasing cooperation between Azerbaijan and NATO was reviewed during a meeting between Azerbaijani Foreign Minister Elmar Mamedyarov and NATO's General Secretary in South Caucasus and Central Asia special representative Robert Simmons.
According to a statement from the Foreign Ministry's press office, Mamedyarov said that while in Washington last week he explored possibilities of increased Azerbaijani-NATO cooperation on issues related to energy security.
A high priority was the 1,092-mile-long, $3.6 billion Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan pipeline, underwritten by a consortium of Western companies, which is due to become fully operational later this year.
Simmons "highly" rated Azerbaijan's cooperation in NATO's Plan of Individual Partnership relationship with NATO.
If Azerbaijan is to achieve its dream of eventually joining NATO, Simmons stressed, reforms must be implemented in several areas and civilian controls must be placed on the country's armed forces.
posted by Marko at 4/14/2006 08:23:00 AM
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