Monday, May 26, 2008

Kyiv's Energy Summit triggers creation of new Euro-Asian oil transport corridor

The 3rd Energy Security Summit ended in Kyiv with signing of three significant documents.

The summit participants, namely the presidents of Ukraine, Azerbaijan, Georgia, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland and Estonia signed a Kyiv Declaration on Principles of Global Energy Security; a Joint Declaration about Caspian-Black Sea-Baltic Energy Transit Space.

Apart from this, the presidents of Azerbaijan, Georgia, Lithuania, Poland and Ukraine signed a Joint Declaration on the Project of Euro-Asian Oil Transport Corridor.

According to President Viktor Yushchenko, the Kyiv summit triggered a regional dialogue to create a single Caspian-Black Sea-Baltic Energy Transit Space, which is "a howling success".

V. Yushchenko said the heads of states passed a decision to set up a working group which is to formulate guidelines of the space creation. The group will present a first report at a regular energy summit in November.

"Tremendous projects are being implemented in the region and a great future is waiting for all of us," Georgia's President Mikhail Saakashvili stressed. However, he did not rule out, Russia with its actions as regards Georgia may hamper the idea of the energy transit corridor creation, alternative to the exiting ones it controls by itself.

According to Lithuanian President Valdas Adamkus, the 3rd Energy Security Summit will go down in history as one of the most important events of the 21st century. "We are on the right track, on the right direction," he noted.

Having emphasized that Azerbaijan has already solved its energy problems, Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev said that today the country may support its friends in oil transport.

He believes that the Kyiv summit gathered together countries involved in oil production, as well as energy resources transit and consumer countries. "This is a very good example of that all these components of the energy policy gathered together and address issues in the spirit of cooperation".