Davutoglu: TANAP to link the Caucasus to the Balkans, Armenia to remain outside projects

Being in Baku on an official visit, Prime Minister of Turkey Ahmet Davutoglu held a press conference after the hour-long meeting with President Ilham Aliyev.

According to the Turkish Prime Minister, over the last 10-12 years, both countries have implemented many joint projects that can be considered extremely important.

He called these projects, bringing peace to all the adjacent regions. Oil and gas pipelines from Azerbaijan bind the Caucasus to the Mediterranean Sea.

TANAP links the Caucasus to the Balkans through Anatolia, and the railway Baku-Kars through a tunnel under the Marmara Sea will connect Beijing with London, he said.

March 17-18, 2015 in the city of Chanaggala there will be a ceremony of laying the foundation of the Anatolian TANAP.

"It is a pity that not all countries can understand the benefits of cooperation and join us," said the Turkish Prime Minister.

Referring to the Karabakh problem, Davutoglu said that while the aggression of Armenia continues, the country will remain outside all the projects.

"If the territorial integrity of Azerbaijan is respected and peace is achieved, Armenia will benefit from this project.

Turkey will be near Azerbaijan until Azerbaijan releases the last inch of its land," said Davutoglu.

Referring to the bilateral relations, he said that at present the trade between Turkey and Azerbaijan is 5 billion dollars, and by 2023 this figure will reach 15 billion dollars.

The Turkish Prime Minister also said that at the meeting with President Ilham Aliyev they had a tete-a-tete talk about cooperation in the defense industry. Both sides are set to expand joint projects in this area. -05D04-