Veteran of Azerbaijani diplomacy: Baku and Ashgabat will achieve impressive successes
Well-known Azerbaijani diplomat, former Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of Azerbaijan to Turkmenistan Vahdet Sultanzade gave an exclusive interview to Day.az News Agency, describing the current level of cooperation between Baku and Ashgabat, and its prospects.
We offer our readers to read this interview, which we present in a slightly briefed form:
- You are a legendary diplomat and one of the most reputable experts in such most important for Azerbaijan countries as Iran, Turkey, Turkmenistan and Afghanistan. The current dynamics in development of relations between Baku and Ashgabat is undoubtedly based on a certain foundation, a base. How would you characterize it?
- Our peoples have for many centuries been living, working, supporting and helping each other. At all these stages of our states’ formation, we have always provided and are giving each other all kinds of support. Of course, the historical, cultural commonality of our peoples, our Turkic origin and common history form the basis for extremely good neighborly relations and partnership.
I would like to emphasize that relations between our countries are not at all limited to this territorial and cultural affinity! Modern Azerbaijan and Turkmenistan are self-sustained, independent states that pursue the effective policy in a variety of areas. Therefore, it is not surprising that the economic cooperation has become the most important component of bilateral partnership in recent years, in particular in the energy sector, transport and cargo transportation, telecommunications, and many other areas.
Of course, there were certain difficulties, but there are sometimes disagreements even between brothers. In the 90s, and later certain questions arose between our countries, but, as is consistent with the fraternal spirit of our relations, all these issues have been resolved. Certainly, Presidents of Azerbaijan and Turkmenistan, Ilham Aliyev and Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedov, had the exceptional role to play in the process of overcoming all differences by our countries. The wise policies of the heads of our states, their mutual visits and close personal contacts have resulted in the strategic nature of the Azerbaijani-Turkmen partnership that we can speak of currently.
- Energy is certainly one of the most important sectors of bilateral cooperation. What can be said about the prospects in this area?
- Over the years of independence Azerbaijan has traversed a long path of development. It has been possible to build an unprecedented infrastructure network over the past 15 years that has opened an access for Azerbaijan’s energy resources to the world market. This, in turn, has brought billions of investments and huge foreign exchange earnings to our economy, which has supplied Azerbaijan with resources that are so vital for further development. There is no need to mention in detail these names which are already well-known to everyone: Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan, Baku-Tbilisi-Erzurum, as well as the Southern Gas Corridor which has added to the first two projects in recent years. In a word, thanks to the initiative and political will of President Ilham Aliyev, a large-scale infrastructure was built in our country, as well as in Georgia and Turkey, which runs like clockwork, supplying our European partners and consumers.
Turkmenistan, like Azerbaijan, is a country rich in minerals. And, undoubtedly, like us, they bet big on hydrocarbon exports. It is no secret to anyone that Europe is one of the most important regions for both Baku and Ashgabat. Turkmenistan has several potential ways to access European markets, but the route through Azerbaijan was, is and will be the most potentially beneficial for Ashgabat. Speaking of that, I certainly mean the initiative to lay the Trans-Caspian pipeline along the bottom of the Caspian Sea. Despite all the difficulties, this project opens up enormous prospects for Turkmen gas in world markets. The long-awaited solution to the issue of the status of the Caspian Sea, I think, will give an additional impetus to this initiative, and we will see in the very near future how Turkmen gas will flow through the pipes of the Southern Gas Corridor. The implementation of this project will be another glorious page in the history of our cooperation.
- What about cooperation in the non-oil sectors? Recently, te ever growing attention has been paid to the development of international transport routes...
- Both Baku and Ashgabat are not limited only to energy. It was emphasized during the negotiations between President Ilham Aliyev and President Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedov which took place in March this year as part of the visit of the Turkmen leader to Baku that cooperation between our two countries should develop in all areas. It was confirmed by more than 20 documents signed following the visit. All these documents concerned a wide variety of areas not related to energy. This includes cooperation between the civil aviation administrations of Azerbaijan and Turkmenistan, and a memorandum providing for the laying of a fiber optic trunk line along the bottom of the Caspian Sea, and many other areas. I would like to note that last year our countries agreed to promote cooperation in the fields of transport, transit and logistics. As for the air traffic, I believe that the establishment of direct flights between our countries will give a serious impetus to bilateral cooperation. I hope that in the near future such flights will be operated on a regular basis. This will promote mutual tourism, and business contacts.
It is worth mentioning that Turkmenistan and Azerbaijan have done a great job in the previous years to create modern transport infrastructure and logistics capabilities. There was no planned coordination of the two Governments’ activities in this area, but it so happened that Baku and Ashgabat were actually working in the same direction in parallel. Large international ports were opened in Alyat and Turkmenbashy almost at the same time. Their integration will play into not only our countries, but also the entire vast Eurasian space.
The transportation capacity of the Turkmenbashy International Sea Port, excluding the transportation of petroleum products, is approximately 17 million tons, including the handling of 400 thousand containers. In the Alyat International Seaport, located 80 kilometers northwest of Baku on the same parallel with the Turkmenbashy port, there are opportunities for handling 15 million tons of cargo, including 100 thousand containers. Already in 2014, ferry services were established between the ports of Alyat and Turkmenbashy. For Azerbaijan and Turkmenistan, the growing transit along the East-West route is turning into an important transport and logistics hub, which will be a vital artery with modern infrastructure, large investments that provide excellent working conditions.
Azerbaijan and Turkmenistan have made a winning bet on cargo turnover growth, logistics and transit. The success of international transport corridors, such as the Lapis Lazuli, East-West and North-South, has once again confirmed the correctness of the wise strategy that Presidents Ilham Aliyev and Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedov chose. In addition, Turkmenistan is interested in using the capabilities of the Baku-Tbilisi-Kars railway, built with the participation of Azerbaijan, to deliver its and transit goods to Turkey with further access to Europe. Everyone will benefit from the growth of transit potential, including Europe, Asia, and, of course, Azerbaijan and Turkmenistan.
- More recently, the media published information that a Turkmen school was opened in the Astrakhan Region of the Russian Federation. In your opinion, how relevant are humanitarian ties between Azerbaijan and Turkmenistan today? What are the prospects?
- Certainly, we can only welcome the opening of a Turkmen school in the Russian Federation, where there are traditionally many people from Turkmenistan. During that event, Foreign Minister, Deputy Cabinet Chairman of Turkmenistan, my greatest friend Rashid Ovezgeldiyevich Meredov suggested that such events were caused by the desire to strengthen and expand cultural, humanitarian and educational ties. Of course, it will be useful and pleasant for all parents whose children attend this school that their children are educated in a school which is a kind of their homeland’s part in Russia. There is no doubt that this idea of Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedov has great potential. I think that it would be great to implement such a project in Azerbaijan. Residents of Turkmenistan often come to our country to work, and, of course, cultural centers, schools and other similar facilities would be very popular. The same applies to Azerbaijani cultural centers and schools in Turkmenistan.
Our peoples are connected by a powerful common historical past, a common Turkic identity. It is possible to say that this commonality has ingrained into our cultural code. And we just can’t help but take this into account. It is much easier for Baku and Ashgabat to find a common ground with each other, including due to this “genetic” mutual understanding, the ties that have been strengthening our brotherhood for many centuries.
- Talking about a common past smoothly brings us to the question of the future. About the prospects...
- Every year our countries cooperate more and more actively. It is enough to see the figures. So bilateral trade increased by 40 percent in 2019, as compared with 2018. This was a very big step forward. Unfortunately, the pandemic that emerged this year caused a serious crisis throughout the world, and this will inevitably affect trade between our countries. But what is important is that the potential for cooperation between Azerbaijan and Turkmenistan is really enormous, and it is far from being fulfilled completely.
We have a lot of promising areas and opportunities. Yes, now there are problems associated with the coronavirus pandemic, fluctuations in world stock exchanges. But it will end soon. These problems can be solved, and issues related to our bilateral cooperation will become relevant again. And I am sure that neither Baku nor Ashgabat will miss the wonderful opportunities that our countries have.
We are yet to see ambitious initiatives and joint projects in the energy sector, transport, tourism and other industries. The key to confidence is the serious political will of Presidents Ilham Aliyev and Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedov. Thanks to the efforts and wisdom of our leaders, our countries will achieve impressive successes, and neither coronavirus nor global problems can prevent this.
