Relations: EU - Caucasus

[Galandar]

In this topic we are discussing relations between EU and the three states in the South Caucasus (Armenia, Azerbaijan and Georgia). The main issues to discuss: EU Neighborhood Policy, EU Energy Policy and Eastern Partnership.

[Galandar]

Azerbaijan, EU reach progress in signing association agreement

'Work is being continued on the association agreement between Azerbaijan and the European Union and some progress has been achieved regarding it'.
The statement came from Roland Kobia, Head of the European Union Delegation to Azerbaijan at the joint meeting of the parliament’s committees concerning the discussion of the draft Customs Code.

Noting that the discussions on the agreement started in June, 2010, Roland Kobia said some details of the document, including security issues were being discussed.

'Along with the association agreement we offer Azerbaijan Free Trade Agreement. This is possible after Azerbaijan becomes member of the World Trade Organization,' he said.

Roland Kobia said over € 157 million technical aid had been rendered for conformation of the legal basis to the EU standards since 1997. As a result of the agreements between the sides, 17 fields have been chosen and process of conformation is being continued in these fields.

Fri 17 June 2011
News.Az

[Galandar]

President Ilham Aliyev holds talks in Brussels about EU-Azerbaijan ties

Within his current Brussels visit the Azerbaijani leader will meet with European Council’s president Herman Van Rompuy, European Commission’s president José Manuel Barroso, European Parliament’s president Jerzy Buzek and the commissioner for enlargement & European Neighborhood Policy Štefan Füle.

The EU Delegation in Azerbaijan reports that a day before the meeting with President Aliyev Mr. Barroso said that he was looking forward to a fruitful and open discussion with the Azerbaijani head about the progress in bilateral relations and important energy issues.

“Promotion of the Southern Gas Corridor which we agreed to establish during my visit in January remains a shared strategic goal of the European Union and Azerbaijan. I will also point to the importance of political reforms and the rule of law for Azerbaijan’s modernization and development,” Mr. Barroso said.

EU Delegation head and ambassador Roland Kobia accompanies President Aliyev during his meetings.

22.06.2011
Fineko/abc.az

[pluckyz]

Originally Posted by Galandar

President Ilham Aliyev holds talks in Brussels about EU-Azerbaijan ties

Within his current Brussels visit the Azerbaijani leader will meet with European Council’s president Herman Van Rompuy, European Commission’s president José Manuel Barroso, European Parliament’s president Jerzy Buzek and the commissioner for enlargement & European Neighborhood Policy Štefan Füle.

The EU Delegation in Azerbaijan reports that a day before the meeting with President Aliyev Mr. Barroso said that he was looking forward to a fruitful and open discussion with the Azerbaijani head about the progress in bilateral relations and important energy issues.

“Promotion of the Southern Gas Corridor which we agreed to establish during my visit in January remains a shared strategic goal of the European Union and Azerbaijan. I will also point to the importance of political reforms and the rule of law for Azerbaijan’s modernization and development,” Mr. Barroso said.

EU Delegation head and ambassador Roland Kobia accompanies President Aliyev during his meetings.

22.06.2011
Fineko/abc.az

Roland Kobia is a georgian?

[Galandar]

Originally Posted by pluckyz

Roland Kobia is a georgian?

No, he is belgian

[pluckyz]

Originally Posted by Galandar

No, he is belgian

funny. he have spread name in georgia and georgian surname

[Galandar]

On 7 February Azerbaijan commences visa-free regime talks with EU

Negotiations on improvement of Azerbaijan’s visa regime with the countries of Council of Europe are to start in Baku on 7 February.

Today in Baku EU ambassador to Azerbaijan Roland Kobia has said that if Azerbaijan has enough political will, then negotiations can be completed within 1/5 years, as well as with Georgia.

"Visa regime facilitation will simplify the procedure for obtaining visas and reduce administrative requirements for obtaining low-cost and long-term visas. Azerbaijan will also be able to use its territory as a transit country for third country nationals," he said.

According to Kobia, simplification of visa regime will not contribute to migration of Azerbaijanis to the EU countries as this process will be applied only towards legal migration.

"We believe that there will be no problems with the influx of Azerbaijanis into the EU, as the population of Azerbaijan is not such big, Azerbaijanis are happy in their own country," Kobia said.

Earlier Azerbaijan welcomed the proposal of European Commission’s president Jose Manuel Barroso to launch negotiations on visa regime facilitation.

Azerbaijan is still discussing the matter with the EU in different formats in the context of the general debate on political issues. However, the formal binding decisions will be made only following negotiations within the framework of the EU’s Eastern Partnership Initiative (EaP).

Azerbaijan provided for consideration of the EU additional information the latter requested and hoped to begin official dialogue on visa-free regime agreement before the end of 2010.

The Baku consultations of the EU and the country’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs conducted on 17-18 June 2010 on issue of mobility did not allow to transfer to negotiations about visa-free regime agreement between the parties.

Previously John Kjaer, the director of the Ukraine, Moldova, Belarus & South Caucasus Department of the European Commission on Foreign Relations claimed about realization of the plans concerning mobility and simplification of visa regime by several stages, including assessment of the technical parameters of the visa system in Azerbaijan and promotion to its development with following visa regime simplification (reduction requirements and the time required to obtain visas) in order to reach an agreement on visa-free regime.

13.01.2012
Fineko/abc.az

[Galandar]

European Commission ready to extend EU-Azerbaijan memorandum of strategic energy partnership

The European Commission is ready to extend the Memorandum of understanding on a strategic partnership between the European Union and the Republic of Azerbaijan in the field of Energy, concluded on 7 November 2006 in Brussels.

Deputy Foreign Minister Mahmud Mammadguliyev says that on 19 February Baku will host the meeting of the subcommittee of cooperation between Azerbaijan and the EU in the field of energy, transport and environment.

"It will discuss the fundamental issues and future cooperation between the two countries. At the same time, the European side is ready to familiarize with the course of implementation of the memorandum of strategic partnership between the EU and Azerbaijan in the field of energy. The European Commission has new ideas for updating and development of the MOU. In this connection, it is possible that after the subcommittee’s meeting the European Commission’s representatives will hold a special meeting at the Ministry of Industry & Energy of Azerbaijan," Mammadguliyev said.

In addition to the memorandum on strategic partnership, Azerbaijan and the EU signed in Baku in January 2011 the Joint Declaration on the Southern Gas Corridor.

In terms of development of the Southern Gas Corridor in 2011, Azerbaijan initiated the construction of Trans-Anatolian gas pipeline (TANAP) with capacity of 10-50 bn cu m of gas a year and created a consortium for this project. In 2017-18 Azerbaijan may start deliveries of 10 bn cu m of gas to the EU with a further increase in exports.

16.01.2013
Fineko/abc.az

[Galandar]

In March EU and Azerbaijan to hold talks on visa regime and readmission

Today in Baku at the meeting of the Caspian-European Integration Business Club (CEIBC) EU Ambassador to Azerbaijan Roland Kobia has said that a regular meeting of experts of the parties on these issues will be held in mid-March.

"Today, progress is noticeable on simplification of visa regime, but questions of readmission still require active work. Both of these issues are interrelated, and without addressing one of them it is impossible to achieve success in the solution of the other one,” Kobia emphasized.

He noted the importance of removing visa restrictions and pointed to Georgia, whose progress in the simplification of the visa regime with the EU helped to more quickly integrate into Europe.

"In case of reaching an agreement Azerbaijani citizens will get a visa for better prices, and European citizens, in turn, will have the opportunity to visit Azerbaijan," Kobia said.

23.01.2013
Baku, Fineko/abc.az