Azernews.Az

By Mirsaid Ibrahimzade

Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade of Hungary Péter Szijjártó told Report that Azerbaijan is a key player in the diversification of energy sources in Europe and Hungary in particular.

“Relations between Hungary and Azerbaijan are strategic. Azerbaijan is an important partner of Europe in the framework of the Eastern Partnership program. In addition, it is important to note the cooperation of Azerbaijan and Hungary in the field of food trade,” Szijjártó stated.

Hungarian Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade also stressed the importance of cooperation in the energy sector.

“Hungary is considering options for diversifying its gas sources. And for us the best option is the supply of Azerbaijani gas through the Southern Gas Corridor (SGC). And at today’s meetings we plan to discuss the issue of raising their volumes and I hope that we will reach agreement on this issue,” Péter Szijjártó said.

Speaking about relations between the two states it is worth noting that in 2017, the trade turnover between the two countries increased by eight percent compared with 2016 and amounted to $ 47 million. In the first eight months of 2018, Hungary’s exports to Azerbaijan increased by 34 percent and reached $ 42 million. The main export items from Hungary to Azerbaijan are well-known pharmaceuticals, energy drinks, agricultural technologies, machinery and equipment, food products.

So touching upon the world wide projects, the Southern Gas Corridor is a giant initiative of EU concerning a number of countries, which is expected to bring Azerbaijani gas to Europe, thus providing energy security. The SGC consists of large infrastructure projects, which in turn require huge investments.

The Southern Gas Corridor is one of the priority energy projects for the EU. It envisages the transportation of gas from the Caspian region to the European countries through Georgia and Turkey.

The launching ceremony of the first stage of the Southern Gas Corridor was held in Baku on May 29, 2018, while opening ceremony of TANAP was held on June 12, 2018 in the Turkish city of Eskisehir.

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