Could the Azerbaijan-Armenia Conflict Threaten Azeri Gas to Europe?
The conflict between Azerbaijan and Armenia came amid a frenzy of diplomatic operations, with Socar’s President meeting a delegation from Teheran to strengthen ties with Iran, while Armenia’s Prime Minister said that Azerbaijani authorities should not dare confronting armies of Artsakh and Armenia.
Despite tensions from 2007 to present, Iran and Azerbaijan share a similar history, religion and culture. Their relations remain central for the gas industry and for ongoing projects. That is why the meeting is so important.
‘Socar President said Iranian companies were successfully working in the oil and gas sector of Azerbaijan and added that the two countries have a rich experience in this sphere which creates large potential for the economic cooperation between them,’ reads a note released on Thursday.
Nico, an Iranian company, is working on the Shah Deniz and South Caucasus Pipeline projects. The Iranian delegation confirmed the importance of this and future energy projects.
‘The sides underlined large prospects for deepening energy cooperation and discussed other points of interest,’ Socar wrote after the meeting between Socar and a delegation led by the Minister of Communication and Information Technology Mahmoud Vaezi.
Meanwhile, the confrontation between Azerbaijan and Armenia continues.
“These incidents demonstrated once again that the Azerbaijani authorities need to realize that they cannot defy the armies of Artsakh and Armenia. The loss of each soldier is a great loss for all of us, and our desire is to negotiate a peaceful settlement of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict,” Armenia’s PM Hovik Abrahamyan commented on Thursday.
Armenia borders on Azerbaijan, Iran, Turkey and Georgia. The country voiced its interest to expand gas cooperation with Iran, but little evidence hints at close cooperation between the two countries.
The South Caucasus Pipeline passes through Azerbaijan, Georgia and Turkey. The Georgian sector is not far from the border with Armenia.
Earlier this year, Gazprom’s Alexey Miller met the President of the Republic of Armenia to discuss the cooperation issues in the energy sector. The company bought the totality of ArmRosgazprom.