Azerbaijan will never agree with Armenia's involvement with the Nabucco gas pipeline project, Azerbaijani parliament's standing economic policy committee chair Vahid Ahmadov said commenting on media reports about Armenia's possible involvement with Nabucco.
“I think these reports are untrue,” Ahmadov said. “I believe Armenia's participation in Nabucco is not realistic until Karabakh problem is resolved and Azerbaijan's occupied lands are freed,” the MP said.
Some media disseminated reports about possible accession of Armenia to Nabucco. The statements came immediately after news about forthcoming reconciliation between Armenia and Turkey later last week.
“THERE WILL BE STILL MORE INTRIGUES AROUND NABUCCO”
“I think there will be still more intrigues around Nabucco,” Azerbaijani political expert Rasim Agayev said while commenting on recent media report about Armenia's possible joining of Nabucco gas pipeline project.
“I believe that Nabucco is more a political project than energy. I think this information appeared in the media in order to instigate Azerbaijan. Armenia itself has no natural resources, besides, it conflicts with the world,” he said.
Some media disseminated reports about possible accession of Armenia to Nabucco. The statements came immediately after news about forthcoming reconciliation between Armenia and Turkey later last week.
“I think Armenia's involvement unlikely will add the desired capacity to Nabucco which would be useful for this project. Armenia's services as a transit country is unlikely to be promising,” the political expert said.
“But, theoretically, everything can happen. Turkey plays a leading role in the Nabucco project. Playing with Nabucco could become a bargaining chip in a big game between Armenia and Turkey. Given the fact that Washington keeps on putting pressure on Turkey and Turkey hands and feet are tied, Armenia’s participation in the project can not be ruled out. But today in practice it is hard to think of it,” Agayev explained.
“As for Azerbaijan, it has not yet expressed its final attitude towards the Nabucco project,” he added.
GEORGIA: “RUMOURS THAT GEORGIA MAY BE REPLACED BY ARMENIA IN NABUCCO IS FAR FROM TRUE
Nabucco gas pipeline partner states will not allow that a new energy infrastructure be organized at the first stage of the project. Therefore, the information as if Georgia may be replaced by Armenia in the Nabucco project is exaggerated, the Energy Ministry of Georgia says, BNE portal BNE (www.businessneweurope.eu) reported.
Nabucco gas pipeline is considered as the extension of the Baku-Tbilisi-Erzurum gas pipeline, Mariam Valishvili, the first deputy Energy Minister told GBC.
A new infrastructure may be organized after gas supply additional sources have been searched and Iran has joined the project, she noted.
Azerbaijan is considered as a key resource basis for Nabucco project, Valishvili noted.
If Armenia and Turkey restore diplomatic relations in the future, Azerbaijan will contradict that Armenia become a transiting country, Valishvili said.
At this stage, Georgia has signed an infrastructure management agreement with the consortium of Shah Deniz. If the consortium of Shah Deniz joins the Nabcuoo gas pipeline filling format, the agreement will be extended automatically.
If Armenia joins the project, the agreement will protect Georgia from exclusion from the project, Valishvili said.
According to the Turkey-based Star newspaper, Turkey may back the involvement of Armenia into the Nabucco project instead of Georgia.
The paper said the European Union (EU), which rendered great assistance to Armenia and Turkey in reaching an agreement, wants the planned Nabucco natural gas pipeline to run through Armenia, not Georgia, as a transit country.
A Russian paper of Kommersant also published similar article.
Moreover, The Express, an Azerbaijan newspaper, says that EU may request that technical changes be made to the Nabucco project and the gas pipeline cross Armenia, not Georgia.
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