Scholz: an increasingly important partner for Azerbaijan, Germany and the EU

After the meeting of German Chancellor Scholz and Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev, a joint press conference was held.

Stating that the meeting discussed how to deepen cooperation between the two countries, Scholz said that Azerbaijan and the EU want to work more closely within the framework of the Eastern Partnership.

“Azerbaijan is an increasingly important partner for Germany and the EU,” Scholz said. he performed the assessment of it.

Noting that Azerbaijan has the potential to diversify the energy supply of Germany and Europe, Scholz cited renewable energy in addition to gas and oil as an example.

Stating that they also discussed the impact of the Russia-Ukraine war on Azerbaijan and the South Caucasus during the meeting, Scholz noted that Russia’s attack on Ukraine is a violation of international law. Scholz reiterated that Russian President Vladimir Putin should abandon his plan and withdraw his troops from Ukraine.

“INTENSIVE EFFORT IS IMPORTANT TO RESOLVE THE DISPUTE PEACEFULLY”

Noting that the war waged by Russia was also a turning point in geopolitical terms, Scholz explained the importance of intensifying efforts towards a peaceful resolution of the longstanding conflict between Armenia and Azerbaijan, especially now.

Underlining that Germany is concerned about the instability on the Armenia-Azerbaijan border, this situation is not sustainable in the long term and carries the danger of increasing tension, Scholz said that the peaceful resolution of the conflict should be based on the principle of territoriality. . integrity of Armenia and Azerbaijan.

Stating that he supports European Union (EU) Council President Charles Michel’s mediation efforts on this issue, Scholz noted that he welcomed President Aliyev’s meeting with his Armenian counterpart many times.

HIGHLIGHT OF SOIL INTEGRITY

Stating that they will never accept Russia’s attempt to invade some parts of Ukraine, Scholz said: “The principle of territorial integrity is valid. This is something that is also decisive for us in many other decisions. We do not accept all the fake referendums held in Donetsk, Luhansk, Zaporizhia and Kherson. The principles that apply here and that we have made clear here, and the determination that the UN Charter does not allow it, are valid everywhere. We will not accept this annexation. We act on this issue and, as you know, there is no recognition of the independence of Nagorno-Karabakh in the international community for this reason (due to the UN Charter). made his assessment.

Scholz said: “Did I understand you correctly? If your independence is not recognized, do you think that Nagorno-Karabakh belongs to Azerbaijan? To the question, “Germany, along with the international community, did not declare any recognition.” he gave the answer.

Pointing to the statistics that EU and German exports to Armenia have tripled in the last 2 years, Scholz answered the question whether Armenia had violated EU sanctions (against Russia) or not. this all over the world. Scholz said that in places where the numbers are increasing, they are looking at what it depends on.

“There are even offices that do this. For example, this is being followed specifically in your neighboring country. Scholz said they told everyone to consider sanctions at every meeting and every bilateral meeting.

“ARMENIA DO NOT MISS THIS OPPORTUNITY”

Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev said that Armenia, which was offered peace, should not miss this opportunity.

Noting that he wanted to address German journalists in particular, Aliyev said: “The lands of Azerbaijan have been subject to Armenian occupation for almost 30 years. One million Azerbaijanis were expelled from their land. We defeated Armenia on the field 2 years ago, they were forced to leave our lands. Armenia, which recognized Karabakh as Armenian territory, lost its chance for peace. We were silent in the 44 day war. Karabakh belongs to Azerbaijan. Now is the time of peace. We offered peace to Armenia, I hope you don’t lose this opportunity.” saying.

Expressing that they signed a goodwill agreement with Europe on energy cooperation, Aliyev said: “We are increasing our gas exports in Europe. Our goal is to increase gas exports from 8 billion cubic meters to 12 billion cubic meters this year. This will correspond to half of all our exports.” he used his statements.

“WE WANT TO MAKE LONG-TERM GAS AGREEMENTS WITH EUROPE”

Emphasizing that Azerbaijan’s largest gas market is Turkey, Aliyev said: “In addition to Turkey, we also supply gas to Georgia. Gas from Azerbaijan reaches Italy. We intend to provide the first flow of gas to Hungary. We are also working on the supply of gas to Albania. There are the Czech Republic, Montenegro, Croatia and Bosnia and Herzegovina. We want to make long-term gas deals with Europe. As long as there are long-term agreements, Azerbaijan’s gas can be distributed to the European geography”. he said.

Expressing that he met nearly 30 German businessmen in Berlin, Aliyev said he was pleased to see their interest in investing in Azerbaijan.

Aliyev also invited German businessmen to Azerbaijan to discuss investment issues. (AA)