ISTANBUL

Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev said Europe’s energy security is “impossible” to imagine without Baku and neighboring Georgia, the country’s presidency quoted him as saying Wednesday.

Addressing the media at a joint press conference with his visiting Georgian counterpart Mikheil Kavelashvili in Baku, Aliyev said that Azerbaijan currently exports natural gas to 12 countries, including Georgia, through its neighbor.

Aliyev further said that many of the joint investment projects worked on by Azerbaijan and Georgia are important for the wider geography.

He also described the projects as ones that “redraw the transport and energy map of not only the South Caucasus, but also the Eurasian region.”

“The achievements made in the field of transport and communications, newly built railways, ports have created great synergy in both Azerbaijan and Georgia and, in fact, have become an integral part of the Middle Corridor,” he went on to say.

The Middle Corridor, also called the Trans-Caspian International Transport Route, is a network of railways and roads that starts in Türkiye and covers Georgia, Azerbaijan, the Caspian Sea, and Central Asia, and reaches China, making it an important effort to revive the ancient Silk Road.

The Azerbaijani president said the volume of cargo passing through their territories is increasing, and that additional steps are being taken to increase this.

Aliyev also said establishing peace and security in the South Caucasus is an issue of common interest, and that both Azerbaijan and Georgia are making their contribution in this regard.

“Unfortunately, for many years, the South Caucasus has become an arena of conflict and war. I hope that from now on the black pages of the South Caucasus will be closed and will remain in history,” he added.

For his part, Kavelashvili expressed that he is certain Georgia and Azerbaijan’s ties will be further strengthened and will move to a new level.

“Close cooperation between our countries in all areas is of particular importance for the effective solution of the tasks facing the region and the world,” Kavelashvili said, arguing that ensuring lasting peace and stability is essential for the South Caucasus to become “even more competitive, reliable, and promising.”

He further emphasized Georgia and Azerbaijan’s support of each other's sovereignty and territorial integrity, conveying that Tbilisi welcomes the consensus reached between Baku and Yerevan on a peace agreement last month.

“This is undoubtedly a step forward in demonstrating and using the potential and opportunities of the region. We hope that a historic agreement will be signed in the near future and will be a decisive impetus for ensuring long-term, sustainable peace in the region,” he said.