Towards turning Turkiye into gas hub
In 2021, Azerbaijan laid the foundation of the Alat Free Economic Zone on the shores of the Caspian Sea, and the first residents have already settled there and companies from Turkiye and Turkmenistan are welcome to benefit from opportunities available in the zone.
The president went further, adding that in 2017, together “with my dear brother Recep Tayyip Erdogan, we inaugurated the BakuTbilisi-Kars Railway. In addition, more than $100m will be invested in this project, and its handling capacity will be increased from the current one million to five million tons”.
Azerbaijan has the largest commercial fleet in the Caspian Sea, with over 50 cargo ships. The Baku Shipyard, commissioned in 2013, is currently operating at its full capacity. This facility is capable of building any type of vessel.
Azerbaijan has one of the largest civil air cargo fleets in the region with 18 cargo planes and it is planned to add nine more planes to the cargo fleet over the next 10 years, the president said, adding that currently, it owns eight international airports.
In remarks about other aspects of cooperation, Ilham Aliyev focused on current challenges worldwide, calling for the expansion of cooperation between the countries in the security, defense, and defense industry sectors.
The leader of Turkiye called for the need to commence collaboration on transporting Turkmen natural gas to Western markets.
We are ready to cooperate with our Turkmen and Azerbaijani brothers and attach importance to the development of mutual electricity trade between our countries in our region. In this context, we are ready to work on electricity transmission from Turkmenistan and Azerbaijan to Turkiye, Erdogan said.
Gas hub
Meanwhile, amid sweeping economic European sanctions on Russian oil supplies and the heightened importance of the search for alternative gas sources, Turkiye, backed by Russia’s Putin, has been at the forefront of becoming a natural gas hub.
Moscow, amid biting sanctions, seems keen on being conducive to Turkey’s desire to become a natural gas hub, and the latest statement by Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Alexander Grushko serves namely to this end.
"The idea is absolutely on the table, and we hope it will be implemented," Russian news agency RIA quoted him as saying that such an arrangement "will be in everyone's interests, both gas producers and consumers".
The project will not only open up a lot of economic opportunities but also contribute to the formation of long-term peace in the South Caucasus.
As Russia continues its war for control over Ukraine, Turkey has been actively expanding its footprint in Central Asian nations that Moscow considered its backyard.
Expanding its all-out ties with the South Caucasus nations of Azerbaijan and Georgia, Ankara has also intensified high-level political contacts with all five Central Asian nations, actively promoting joint infrastructure projects. As a Nato member nation, Turkey also enjoys the military alliance’s backing as it also serves the west’s interests.