Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Evangelos Venizelos made the following statement following his meeting with the President of the Republic of Azerbaijan, Ilham Aliyev:
“This was the third round of talks it has been my honor to have today with President Aliyev, following the meetings with the President of the Republic and the Prime Minister. It is our strategic choice to promote our bilateral relations with Azerbaijan.
Azerbaijan is a pillar of stability in the wider region. It is an energy provider, a decisive factor in the European continent’s energy security. In the foreign policy sector, Greek-Azerbaijani cooperation can also produce very positive results with regard to the European Union and with regard to wider Euroatlantic cooperation.
In a region in turmoil, extending to the eastern and southern neighbourhoods of the European Union, it is very, very important to have some strategic partners who function as anchors of stability. This is Azerbaijan’s role – a state that is also prepared to invest in Greece, and thus to contribute to the growth of Greece’s real economy now, as we are emerging from the crisis.
President Aliyev and his associates see very well how great an achievement has been made here, thanks to the sacrifices of the Greek people. And they really do want to capitalize on Greece as a space for their strong presence in the European Union. Naturally, we also talked about all the special issues, the promotion of the Trans Adriatic Pipeline (TAP) so as to facilitate construction, not just in Greece, but also in Albania and Italy.
We also talked about the prospects for DESFA, which will now be collaborating with SOCAR, the major Azerbaijani company, because DESFA’s great advantage is Revithoussa, the LNG terminal, which is a comparative advantage for the whole of central and southeastern Europe.”
June 16, 2014