Page 7 - MEOG Week 48 2021

MEOG PIPELINES & TRANSPORT MEOG

Iran, Azerbaijan and Turkmenistan

sign gas swap agreement

IRAN IRAN, Azerbaijan and Turkmenistan have of natural gas after Russia, but most of its major
signed a trilateral gas swap deal that covers a vol- gas fields are located in its south, thus Iran has
ume of up to 2bn cubic metres (bcm) per year, brought in gas from neighbouring Turkmeni-
Iran’s IRIB TV and Radio Broadcasting Corpo- stan in the north since 1997 for distribution in
ration reported on November 28. its northern provinces. It is especially required
Signed in the Turkmen capital, Ashgabat, on during the winter.
the sidelines of a regional economic summit, The new deal was signed on the sidelines of a
the swap deal boosts an existing agreement. summit of the Economic Cooperation Organ-
Under the agreement, Iran will receive gas from ization (ECO). It members are all five Central
Turkmenistan and deliver the same amount to Asian countries – Turkmenistan, Kazakhstan,
Azerbaijan, Iranian Oil Minister Javad Owji told Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, and Uzbekistan – as well
Iranian state media. as Afghanistan, Azerbaijan, Iran, Pakistan and
“Turkmenistan will sell 5-6 million cubic Turkey.
meters of gas per day to Azerbaijan under the “The signed document is very important.
trilateral agreement,” Iranian state TV quoted This is a historical document, it shows how deep
Owji as saying. the Azerbaijani-Iranian ties are. Azerbaijan will
Owji was further cited as saying that Iran receive Turkmen gas through Iran. This is good
was moving to resolve a gas debt dispute with grounds for trilateral cooperation. The signed
Turkmenistan that began as far back as 2016. document is important from the point of view
In that year, Turkmenistan claimed that Iran of economic and energy security,” Azerbaijan’s
owed at least $1.5bn for gas it had received from President Ilham Aliyev said at the summit.
Turkmenistan. Iran disputed the figure and the Iranian President Ibrahim Raisi stressed that
matter moved to international arbitration, but it the signed deal was aimed at developing rela-
remains unresolved. tions between the countries involved.
“We will soon pay the first instalment to clear “In this direction, there is a need for numer-
the gas debt that we owe to the Turkmen side, ous steps and this document is aimed at
after talks that were held earlier,” Owji said, while expanding cooperation between the countries,
not specifying a debt figure. including in the spheres of economy, trade, tran-
Iran has the world’s second largest reserves sit and culture,” he said.™

POLICY & SECURITY

Optimism about resumption of Vienna talks

IRAN WESTERN diplomats reportedly expressed There were previously anxieties that Raisi’s
guarded optimism and relief late on November team would shun the progress made in the first
29 following the first day of resumed talks in round of talks during the Rouhani presidency
Vienna on finding a pathway to reviving the 2015 and demand that compiling a list of US sanctions
Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), against Tehran that must be lifted be treated as
between Iran and major powers. the sole legitimate issue for discussion.
The Guardian reported unexpected progress Mora said: “There was a sense of urgency to
when Tehran formally agreed to discuss steps to bring an end to the sanctions and the suffering
come back into compliance with the agreement, of the Iranian people… The Iranian delegation
abandoned by former US president Donald recognises the work we have done in the past six
Trump in 2018 and since then essentially treated rounds [of the Vienna talks] and the fact that we
as non-binding by Iran. will build on this work going ahead.”
The EU’s chief negotiator at the talks, Enrique The Russian ambassador to the talks, Mikhail
Mora, said Iran had agreed that the talks could Ulyanov, also described the opening of the talks
resume largely where they had ended in June as successful.
– ahead of the summer presidential election in Ali Bagheri, the new Iranian chief negotiator,
Iran that brought hardline cleric Ebrahim Raisi said he was optimistic. However, he stated that
to power as the successor to pragmatic, mod- he was seeking a US guarantee that it would not
erate Hassan Rouhani – rather than with an only lift a swath of economic sanctions but also
entirely new agenda. pledge not to reimpose them in the future.

Week 48 01•December•2021 www. NEWSBASE .com P7