Azerbaijan is set to increase and diversify its energy supplies to Europe beyond the current 10 EU member states, President Ilham Aliyev announced on Thursday during the 9th European Political Community Summit in Dublin. Aliyev held talks with European Council President Antonio Costa to discuss long-term energy contracts in the context of continuing successful cooperation between Azerbaijan and the European Union in gas supplies. Costa declared that the resumption of negotiations on a new EU-Azerbaijan agreement is good news for our citizens, emphasizing the two-way benefits of the partnership established under the EU-Azerbaijan Strategic Partnership in the Field of Energy in 2022.
Aliyev stated that Azerbaijan increased its gas supplies to the European Union from 8 billion cubic meters to 13 billion cubic meters, accounting for nearly half of the country's exports. With the discovery of new fields, Baku plans to increase supplies further and continue expanding the capacity of the gas pipeline stretching from Baku to Italy, which passes through seven countries and currently operates at full capacity. Cooperation is also focusing on renewable energy through an agreement reached between Azerbaijan, Georgia, Turkey and Bulgaria on exporting renewable energy to European markets. Costa and Aliyev discussed transport links within the global Middle Corridor project connecting Asia to Europe, and Costa invited Aliyev to Brussels to continue discussions.
President Aliyev and British Prime Minister Andy Burnham signed a Joint Declaration on Strategic Partnership between Azerbaijan and the United Kingdom, focusing on defence, security, trade, investment, renewable energy, infrastructure, and artificial intelligence. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy held a detailed discussion with Aliyev on emergency support for Ukraine's energy grid, post-conflict reconstruction strategies, and the ongoing bilateral drone agreement. Zelenskyy confirmed that contracts were signed under the Drone Deal and thanked Aliyev for humanitarian assistance, as officials confirmed an ongoing 1.35 million euro emergency grid support package from Baku, bringing total Azerbaijani humanitarian aid to Ukraine to 48 million euros.
Aliyev held new talks with Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan on advancing their peace consolidation, border delimitations, water cooperation, electricity grid interconnections, confidence-building measures, and the progress of the Trump Route for International Peace and Prosperity connectivity project. Aliyev also met with Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis to discuss upgrading the Southern Gas Corridor, Moldovan President Maia Sandu on energy security and trade, Romanian counterpart Nicusor Dan on linking the Caspian and Black Seas, and held energy talks with Bulgarian Prime Minister Rumen Radev and Czech Prime Minister Andrej Babis.
Source: Euronews. Read the original report ↗