Russia, Azerbaijan and Iran have agreed to start discussing in detail the implementation of the project of the transport corridor along the western Caspian coast, the Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said today.
"We discussed issues of the material sphere of cooperation. We agreed that our relevant agencies will start detailing practical aspects of implementing the project of the transport corridor along the western Caspian coast. This envisages work with participation of the transport ministries that should consider the technical and financial parameters of the project. This also envisages cooperation between customs and consular services, and we have agreed on that today," RIA Novosti cited him as saying.
"We began negotiations in the new Azerbaijan-Iranian-Russian format. These meetings demonstrate the fruitful cooperation in different directions," the head of the Russian Foreign Ministry noted.
Azerbaijani Foreign Minister Elmar Mammadyarov said that the ministers discussed problems of regional cooperation and the implementation of major projects, noting that part of the Astara railway line will be implemented before the end of the year.
Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif, in his turn, said that the implementation of the railway projects is in the interest of Azerbaijan, Iran and Russia.
"We believe that these projects will speed up cargo transit. There will be a presentation of the bridge between Azerbaijani Astara and Iranian Astara on April 20," he said.
"We believe that this cooperation will provide greater prosperity, stability and security in the region," Zarif said, noting that Tehran hopes the Russia-Azerbaijan-Iran summit will be held.
The foreign ministers of Azerbaijan, Russia and Iran have agreed to start a discussion to prepare a tripartite summit following the meeting.
"The sides have agreed to start consultations to prepare the first trilateral Russian-Azerbaijani-Iranian summit," the joint communiqué of the participants states.
Speaking about the Caspian Sea issue, the Russian Foreign Minister stressed that Moscow hopes that the draft convention on the legal status of Caspian Sea will be developed for the summit of the Caspian countries to be held in Astana.
"We discussed the Caspian issue and agreed to intensify preparations for the 5th Caspian summit in Astana. We expect to prepare a draft convention on the legal status of Caspian Sea for the summit. The foreign ministers of the five countries will review the progress, which was outlined by our experts, in July this year," he said.
The head of the Azerbaijani Foreign Ministry said that the foreign ministers of the three countries also discussed energy issues on the eve of a meeting of oil producers in Qatar.
Sergei Lavrov, in turn, noted that Moscow hopes that the upcoming Qatar meeting on April 17 will lead to concrete agreements on stabilizing oil markets. "We hope that this meeting will lead to reaching concrete agreements on how to cooperate in the interests of all states and in the interests of stabilizing the oil markets," he said.
Mohammad Javad Zarif also noted that Iran wants to regain its place on the oil and gas market: "Iran must regain its place on the market within the framework of cooperation with other producers," Zarif said.
Recall, as Vestnik Kavkaza reported, Baku today hosted a trilateral meeting of the foreign ministers of Russia, Azerbaijan and Iran.
A senior scientist of the Institute of Oriental Studies of the RAS, Stanislav Pritchin, noted in an interview with the correspondent of Vestnik Kavkaza that for Russia this new page of economic cooperation with Azerbaijan and Iran will become an important direction of development of the Caspian Sea transport capacity. "A shortcut for the supply and maintenance of communications between the Indian Ocean and the Russian Volga region is being created. And of course it will boost the economic development of the North Caucasus and the Volga region," the expert explained.
Pritchin stressed that Russia and Azerbaijan consider Iran as one of their key economic partners now, cooperation with which was banned by the international sanctions. "For Russia and Azerbaijan it is important to ensure their own markets there, as well as coordination of the industry in which there are joint developments, in particular in the oil industry. The cooperation with Iran in the transport sector is also important for Russia," he said.
"Military-technical cooperation is one of the priority directions of development for Russia, it is also quite an important sphere for Azerbaijan," Stanislav Pritchin concluded.
The director of the Center for International Trade Studies of the Institute of Applied Economic Research of RANEPA, Alexander Knobel, in his turn, expects a favorable increase in trade turnover between Iran, Azerbaijan and Russia after the implementation of the corridor. "And Azerbaijan is interested in expanding trade relations and Russia is more interested in investing in nuclear energy and Iran's energy projects," the expert noted.
