Agency says Russia trying to hinder Azerbaijani gas going through Iran

Assa-Irada, Baku
15 Jul 04

BAKU

Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev received Russia’s ex-prime minister
and current ambassador to Ukraine, Viktor Chernomyrdin, on 15 July.
Aliyev touched on Russian-Azerbaijani relations and drew attention to
positive dynamics in these relations which have a firm base. According
to him, the days of Russian culture recently held in Baku, a
Russian-Azerbaijani business forum, plans to hold a year of Azerbaijan
in Russia and a year of Russia in Azerbaijan, the fruitful work of the
intergovernmental commission and frequent mutual visits by official
delegations testify to a high level of understanding between the two
countries. Aliyev expressed the hope that this tendency will continue
in the spirit of strategic partnership in the future.

Chernomyrdin expressed the hope that Russian-Azerbaijani relations
will continue to develop and strengthen.

The aim of the sudden visit to Baku by one of Russia’s gas magnates,
Viktor Chernomyrdin, is not disclosed officially, and observers link
it to the fact that an Iranian gas pipeline might be built through
Azerbaijan to export gas to Europe. Russia, which does not want
Iranian gas to go to Europe, managed to prevent the construction of
the gas pipeline through Armenian territory.

From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress