Richard Morningstar: Would Azerbaijan be able to retain its independence if there is not a Baku- Tbilisi- Ceyhan oil pipeline?

The USA wants the participation of U.S. companies in  major energy projects  in Azerbaijan, said the  U.S. Ambassador to Azerbaijan, Richard Morningstar , speaking on Caspian Energy Forum (Caspian Energy Forum- 2014 ) in Baku on Wednesday .

The U.S. diplomat said that the development of the project "Step -2" in the field "Shah Deniz " may lead to the discovery of new hydrocarbon reserves.   The attraction of international partnership is very important for  Azerbaijan, he said.

"Azerbaijan's energy resources are very important for the energy security of Europe. The United States will work very closely with Azerbaijan in this direction. Projects " Shah Deniz ", TANAP and TAP are very important , and their implementation  requires a lot of courage," said the U.S. ambassador .

The diplomat noted  three main criteria which , in his opinion ,  the State Oil Company  of Azerbaijan (SOCAR) should be guided by during  the  implementation of the project.

Firstly, the foreign partner must be supported by their government.

Secondly,  it is necessary to take into account large financial costs required for energy projects. Up to $50 billion  were spent on the implementation of previous projects,  and the projects  to be implemented in future projects will also be very expensive. Therefore , they must be implemented in the framework of international partnership , says Morningstar .

Thirdly, we need to take into account the factor  of providing energy diversity.

"The U.S. will not get directly oil and gas  from projects in the region. Nevertheless , we believe it is important to ensure energy security of Europe," said  Morningstar.

"Azerbaijan is one of the states in the CIS , with its fully independent policy, and  is quite independent.  Recent events in the world once more acutely demonstrate how important aspects are state sovereignty and independence for Azerbaijan.  Would Azerbaijan be able to retain  its independence if  there is not a Baku- Tbilisi- Ceyhan oil pipeline? Therefore , new projects play an important role in ensuring the sovereignty and independence of Azerbaijan," said the ambassador. –12C-