Friendship stretching 556 km to the East and 1441 km to the West
2007.02.15
Georgian Times
By Maia Edilashvili
The visit by Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev to Tbilisi on February 7 dominated last week's regional news as several documents were signed in Tbilisi.
Baku-Akhalkalaki-Kars - New Regional Railway
Georgian President Mikhail Saakashvili described the Kars-Akhalkalaki-Tbilisi-Baku Railroad Project as a "momentous geopolitical breakthrough” after negotiating with visiting Turkish and Azerbaijani leaders on February 7. He underlined that this new regional railway will link Asia with Europe to become “a modern version of the new Silk Road.”
Speaking at a joint news conference, Saakashvili said: “This is a project that will lead to a geopolitical revolution in our region because this will be a new line that will connect not only our three countries, but that will also interlink the Asian and European regions with each other.” The project, which he said would cost “several hundreds of millions” of U.S. dollars, will bring “several hundreds of billions” in revenues.
Under the agreement between Azerbaijan and Georgia, Azerbaijan will allocate USD 200 million to finance construction and rehabilitation works for the Georgian portion of Kars-Akhalkalaki-Tbilisi-Baku Railroad. Georgia will have to repay the loan with 1% annual interest within 25 years. Tbilisi says the revenues from the Baku-Akhalkalaki-Kars railway will be used to cover the loan. It is estimated that the railway will have the capacity to transport 15 million tons of cargo annually.
While evaluating importance of the new railroad project, Saakashvili also said that after their gloomy past, the South Caucasus countries have only one alternative, which is to strive jointly for development of the region. Not a single country of this region, he added, should refrain from the global projects.
Here Saakashvili referred to Armenia, who voiced vigorous objection to construction of the Baku-Akhalkalaki-Kars railway, claiming that the project will further isolate landlocked Armenia. In 2006, as a result of insistent lobbying by Armenian Diaspora groups, the US Senate banned US-based Ex-Im Bank from financing the construction of the project. As an alternative to the Baku-Akhalkalaki-Kars railway, Yerevan is pushing for reopening the already existing Kars-Gyumri-Tbilisi railway. Presently, the railroad between the Turkish town of Kars and Armenia’s Gyumri is not operational because of trade blockades imposed on Armenia by Turkey and Azerbaijan.
Objections to the Baku-Akhalkalaki-Kars railway have been expressed in Georgia as well. Namely, some politicians—including Georgia's former Foreign Minister Salome Zourabichvili—expressed fears that project will be economically unjustifiable in the long run as the launch of the Baku-Akhalkalaki-Kars railroad will redirect the flow of cargo from Georgia’s Black Sea ports of Batumi and Poti, which could lead to significant financial losses for Georgia.
However, authorities downplayed these concerns. Georgian Economy Minister Giorgi Arveladze has commented: “Additional transport routes are of especial importance for us against the continuing economic blockade from Russia.”
A 29 km-long railway will be constructed on Georgian territory from Akhalkalaki to the Turkish border, and a 192 km section of already existing railway infrastructure will be rehabilitated. According to officials, project implementation will take about two and a half years.
Georgia's Gag Concerns and Neighbours' Promises
Following talks with Georgian and Azerbaijani leaders in Tbilisi on February 7, Turkish Prime Minister Erdogan said: “We are doing our best to allocate 800 million cubic meters of gas to Georgia from the Turkish share by this July. This is our promise.”
In recent months, Tbilisi has been striving to convince Turkey to give up part of its Shah-Deniz gas quota in order to lessen Georgia's reliance on costly Russian gas, but a final agreement has not yet been reached. As the Turkish media reports, Ankara is reluctant to give the highly anticipated go-ahead because it already has commitments to deliver part of its Shah-Deniz quota to Italy and Greece.
However, Saakashvili said at the February 7 press conference that Georgia would start receiving Turkey’s share of gas. “First, I want to say that we will be receiving Turkey’s quota as soon as Shah-Deniz is put into operation. At the same time, Azerbaijan will gradually increase gas supplies to Georgia. This means that the share of more reliable and cheaper gas in Georgia’s gas balance will increase,” he stated.
Making all efforts to diversify its gas supplies, Georgia currently receives gas from three suppliers: Russia's Gazprom, at USD 235 per cubic meters of gas; State Oil Company of Azerbaijan (SOCAR), USD 120; and Azerbaijan's Shah-Deniz, USD 62.
Turkish Prime Minister Erdogan noted that Turkey, like Georgia and Azerbaijan, faces energy-related problems. “But it is important to solve these problems based on solidarity between these three countries,” he added.
Saakashvili pointed out that the most important thing is that the three countries have managed to put into operation an alternative energy supply route. “This is an alternative route for Europe (to transport) oil and gas… That is why we call this cooperation (between the three countries) historic.”
Shah Deniz gas is being pumped to Turkey, and onward to Europe through Baku-Tbilisi-Erzurum pipeline. The USD 4.5 billion Shah Deniz project started December of 2006 and is expected to produce 8.6 billion cubic metres of gas each year.
New terminal of Tbilisi International Airport Festively Opened
On February 7, Saakashvili, Aliyev and Erdogan solemnly cut red ribbons at the new terminal of Tbilisi International Airport. The leaders of all three countries noted that the airport of European standards would be a precondition for the development of tourism and business in Georgia.
Speaking at the inaugural ceremony last Wednesday, Saakashvili said, "This is one of the best airports in Europe. Two years ago I promised to have it and we have done it. This airport is much better than the airport in Brussels, or the airport in Munich."
Construction of the new terminal began in January 2006. Teamed up with the Turkish construction firm Urban, TAV Georgia, which is a daughter company of Turkey's TAV Airport Holding (Tepe-Akfen-Vie), has been in charge of the construction. According to the deal struck in the autumn of 2005, the Turkish company acquired the Tbilisi Airport on BOT (Build-Operate-Transfer) terms with 15-year management rights.
Overall, USD 90.5m has been invested in the project. EBRD and IFC have well provided a 54 m Dollar credit to TAV Georgia for the construction works. The latter has spent USD 65m on the reconstructed airport, which the investor says is the biggest, and has the most contemporary design in the region. The new glass-walled, square-shaped airport will handle 1500 passengers an hour and 2.8 m passengers a year. The new terminal has a total area of 24.000 square meters and three passenger-boarding bridges. Equipped with three telescopic platforms, it has a new round-the-clock checkpoint and a new luggage check-in system.
TAV is also constructing a new airport in Batumi, Adjara Autonomous Republic. The Turkish company has invested about USD 100 million into the two projects.
President Aliyev, who returned to Baku after the opening ceremony, was the first passenger to depart from the new airport.
New Project, New Memorial, New Triumph – Even in Football
On February 7, Azerbaijani, Georgian and Turkish leaders signed the Tbilisi declaration on Common Vision for Regional Cooperation between Azerbaijan, Georgia and Turkey. The declaration says that by realizing major regional projects involving oil and gas pipelines and a railway network, the three states are establishing “long-term and predictable” relations.
A declaration has been signed to launch the construction of an electricity transmission line that will link Azerbaijan with Turkey via Georgia. The document reads: “We agree to support the construction of a new electricity transmission line from the Republic of Azerbaijan through the territory of Georgia to the Republic of Turkey, as well as other appropriate projects, which will enhance electricity exchange between the Parties in future.”
On the right bank of the River Mtkvari in Tbilisi, Saakashvili and his Azerbaijani counterpart inaugurated a 5-meter memorial board for Heydar Aliyev, as a section of the river bank has been renamed after Heydar Aliyev, late President of Azerbaijan and the father of Ilham Aliyev. The monument is 556 km from Tbilisi to Baku and 1441 from Tbilisi to Ankara.
Georgian Parliamentary Speaker Nino Burjanadze commented that Heydar Aliyev was the political figure that "has contributed much in boosting strategic ties between Azerbaijan and Georgia."
After participating in the inauguration of the New Airport Terminal, Ilham Aliyev left for Azerbaijan, while the Georgian President and the Turkish Prime Minister attended a friendly Georgian-Turkish football match at the Boris Paichadze stadium, where Georgia's David Siradze scored the only goal of the game to defeat the Turkish National Turkish team 1-0.
Note: Above are excerpts from the article. The full article appears here. Clarifications and comments by me are contained in {}. Deletions are marked by [...]. The bold emphasis is mine.
Georgian Times
By Maia Edilashvili
The visit by Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev to Tbilisi on February 7 dominated last week's regional news as several documents were signed in Tbilisi.
Baku-Akhalkalaki-Kars - New Regional Railway
Georgian President Mikhail Saakashvili described the Kars-Akhalkalaki-Tbilisi-Baku Railroad Project as a "momentous geopolitical breakthrough” after negotiating with visiting Turkish and Azerbaijani leaders on February 7. He underlined that this new regional railway will link Asia with Europe to become “a modern version of the new Silk Road.”
Speaking at a joint news conference, Saakashvili said: “This is a project that will lead to a geopolitical revolution in our region because this will be a new line that will connect not only our three countries, but that will also interlink the Asian and European regions with each other.” The project, which he said would cost “several hundreds of millions” of U.S. dollars, will bring “several hundreds of billions” in revenues.
Under the agreement between Azerbaijan and Georgia, Azerbaijan will allocate USD 200 million to finance construction and rehabilitation works for the Georgian portion of Kars-Akhalkalaki-Tbilisi-Baku Railroad. Georgia will have to repay the loan with 1% annual interest within 25 years. Tbilisi says the revenues from the Baku-Akhalkalaki-Kars railway will be used to cover the loan. It is estimated that the railway will have the capacity to transport 15 million tons of cargo annually.
While evaluating importance of the new railroad project, Saakashvili also said that after their gloomy past, the South Caucasus countries have only one alternative, which is to strive jointly for development of the region. Not a single country of this region, he added, should refrain from the global projects.
Here Saakashvili referred to Armenia, who voiced vigorous objection to construction of the Baku-Akhalkalaki-Kars railway, claiming that the project will further isolate landlocked Armenia. In 2006, as a result of insistent lobbying by Armenian Diaspora groups, the US Senate banned US-based Ex-Im Bank from financing the construction of the project. As an alternative to the Baku-Akhalkalaki-Kars railway, Yerevan is pushing for reopening the already existing Kars-Gyumri-Tbilisi railway. Presently, the railroad between the Turkish town of Kars and Armenia’s Gyumri is not operational because of trade blockades imposed on Armenia by Turkey and Azerbaijan.
Objections to the Baku-Akhalkalaki-Kars railway have been expressed in Georgia as well. Namely, some politicians—including Georgia's former Foreign Minister Salome Zourabichvili—expressed fears that project will be economically unjustifiable in the long run as the launch of the Baku-Akhalkalaki-Kars railroad will redirect the flow of cargo from Georgia’s Black Sea ports of Batumi and Poti, which could lead to significant financial losses for Georgia.
However, authorities downplayed these concerns. Georgian Economy Minister Giorgi Arveladze has commented: “Additional transport routes are of especial importance for us against the continuing economic blockade from Russia.”
A 29 km-long railway will be constructed on Georgian territory from Akhalkalaki to the Turkish border, and a 192 km section of already existing railway infrastructure will be rehabilitated. According to officials, project implementation will take about two and a half years.
Georgia's Gag Concerns and Neighbours' Promises
Following talks with Georgian and Azerbaijani leaders in Tbilisi on February 7, Turkish Prime Minister Erdogan said: “We are doing our best to allocate 800 million cubic meters of gas to Georgia from the Turkish share by this July. This is our promise.”
In recent months, Tbilisi has been striving to convince Turkey to give up part of its Shah-Deniz gas quota in order to lessen Georgia's reliance on costly Russian gas, but a final agreement has not yet been reached. As the Turkish media reports, Ankara is reluctant to give the highly anticipated go-ahead because it already has commitments to deliver part of its Shah-Deniz quota to Italy and Greece.
However, Saakashvili said at the February 7 press conference that Georgia would start receiving Turkey’s share of gas. “First, I want to say that we will be receiving Turkey’s quota as soon as Shah-Deniz is put into operation. At the same time, Azerbaijan will gradually increase gas supplies to Georgia. This means that the share of more reliable and cheaper gas in Georgia’s gas balance will increase,” he stated.
Making all efforts to diversify its gas supplies, Georgia currently receives gas from three suppliers: Russia's Gazprom, at USD 235 per cubic meters of gas; State Oil Company of Azerbaijan (SOCAR), USD 120; and Azerbaijan's Shah-Deniz, USD 62.
Turkish Prime Minister Erdogan noted that Turkey, like Georgia and Azerbaijan, faces energy-related problems. “But it is important to solve these problems based on solidarity between these three countries,” he added.
Saakashvili pointed out that the most important thing is that the three countries have managed to put into operation an alternative energy supply route. “This is an alternative route for Europe (to transport) oil and gas… That is why we call this cooperation (between the three countries) historic.”
Shah Deniz gas is being pumped to Turkey, and onward to Europe through Baku-Tbilisi-Erzurum pipeline. The USD 4.5 billion Shah Deniz project started December of 2006 and is expected to produce 8.6 billion cubic metres of gas each year.
New terminal of Tbilisi International Airport Festively Opened
On February 7, Saakashvili, Aliyev and Erdogan solemnly cut red ribbons at the new terminal of Tbilisi International Airport. The leaders of all three countries noted that the airport of European standards would be a precondition for the development of tourism and business in Georgia.
Speaking at the inaugural ceremony last Wednesday, Saakashvili said, "This is one of the best airports in Europe. Two years ago I promised to have it and we have done it. This airport is much better than the airport in Brussels, or the airport in Munich."
Construction of the new terminal began in January 2006. Teamed up with the Turkish construction firm Urban, TAV Georgia, which is a daughter company of Turkey's TAV Airport Holding (Tepe-Akfen-Vie), has been in charge of the construction. According to the deal struck in the autumn of 2005, the Turkish company acquired the Tbilisi Airport on BOT (Build-Operate-Transfer) terms with 15-year management rights.
Overall, USD 90.5m has been invested in the project. EBRD and IFC have well provided a 54 m Dollar credit to TAV Georgia for the construction works. The latter has spent USD 65m on the reconstructed airport, which the investor says is the biggest, and has the most contemporary design in the region. The new glass-walled, square-shaped airport will handle 1500 passengers an hour and 2.8 m passengers a year. The new terminal has a total area of 24.000 square meters and three passenger-boarding bridges. Equipped with three telescopic platforms, it has a new round-the-clock checkpoint and a new luggage check-in system.
TAV is also constructing a new airport in Batumi, Adjara Autonomous Republic. The Turkish company has invested about USD 100 million into the two projects.
President Aliyev, who returned to Baku after the opening ceremony, was the first passenger to depart from the new airport.
New Project, New Memorial, New Triumph – Even in Football
On February 7, Azerbaijani, Georgian and Turkish leaders signed the Tbilisi declaration on Common Vision for Regional Cooperation between Azerbaijan, Georgia and Turkey. The declaration says that by realizing major regional projects involving oil and gas pipelines and a railway network, the three states are establishing “long-term and predictable” relations.
A declaration has been signed to launch the construction of an electricity transmission line that will link Azerbaijan with Turkey via Georgia. The document reads: “We agree to support the construction of a new electricity transmission line from the Republic of Azerbaijan through the territory of Georgia to the Republic of Turkey, as well as other appropriate projects, which will enhance electricity exchange between the Parties in future.”
On the right bank of the River Mtkvari in Tbilisi, Saakashvili and his Azerbaijani counterpart inaugurated a 5-meter memorial board for Heydar Aliyev, as a section of the river bank has been renamed after Heydar Aliyev, late President of Azerbaijan and the father of Ilham Aliyev. The monument is 556 km from Tbilisi to Baku and 1441 from Tbilisi to Ankara.
Georgian Parliamentary Speaker Nino Burjanadze commented that Heydar Aliyev was the political figure that "has contributed much in boosting strategic ties between Azerbaijan and Georgia."
After participating in the inauguration of the New Airport Terminal, Ilham Aliyev left for Azerbaijan, while the Georgian President and the Turkish Prime Minister attended a friendly Georgian-Turkish football match at the Boris Paichadze stadium, where Georgia's David Siradze scored the only goal of the game to defeat the Turkish National Turkish team 1-0.
Note: Above are excerpts from the article. The full article appears here. Clarifications and comments by me are contained in {}. Deletions are marked by [...]. The bold emphasis is mine.
Labels: Armenia and Georgia, Caucasus Cooperation, Turkey and Azerbaijan
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