The President of Georgia met with the Ministers of Economy of Turkey and Azerbaijan today. The sides discussed the issues related to deepening cooperation as well as current and planned projects. As Mikheil Saakashvili noted during the meeting, Georgia, Turkey, and Azerbaijan are greatly contributing to the development of the economies of all three countries. According to him, such a format of cooperation is exemplary for other countries in the region.
“The joint format of the Ministers of Economy of Azerbaijan, Turkey, and Georgia is good and successful. Our countries are important partners and they are contributing to the development of the economies of each country. Turkey is our main trade partner and Azerbaijan is one of the main investors; more than 800 million USD has been invested from Azerbaijan in our country in recent years, which means that a lot of jobs have been created and a lot of families have felt relief. A very important symbol of our friendship is the new railway, the construction of which will nearly end this year and which will connect Georgia and Azerbaijan to the railway of Europe through Turkey. Turkey is becoming our new window to Europe. We were really isolated from Europe in terms of land communications, but this railway is truly a breakthrough for our region towards Europe. New customs checkpoints will be opened between Georgia and Turkey in Katsakhi and the Machakhela Gorge soon. Additionally, the Sarpi customs checkpoint will expand on the Turkish side exactly like on our side. We are cooperating with Azerbaijan in a similar manner and not only is the trade flow increasing, but the number of Azeri tourists in our country as well. This assists in developing our tourism sector and deepening ties between the people. With the help of Azerbaijan, this year the gasification of Georgia will continue and 80% of Georgian families will have natural gas. We have seen the importance of our cooperation in the energy sphere especially during this cold winter. At a time when Europe faced a serious problem in terms of natural gas supply, Georgia did not have such problems and it is the merit of Azerbaijan. We created a state format of cooperation so there are many hydro electric power plants with lines in Azerbaijan and Turkey. The fact that we can sell electricity, and there will be an opportunity to build more plants which will create more jobs and open new facilities is important. In the end, this is the only way of overcoming poverty and unemployment in our country. Vera Kobalia is travelling extensively to both countries because for the Ministry of Economic Development it is very important to cooperate with Turkey and Azerbaijan” – stated Mikheil Saakashvili. Extensively
The Minister of Economy of Turkey first of all thanked the President of Georgia for saving and returning the Turkish sailors to their country and for the assistance of Georgia during an earthquake in Turkey. Zafer Caglayan focused attention on the economic reforms in the country, called them successful, and noted that the Turkish side is ready to assist the development of the Georgian economy even more.
“We are observing with satisfaction the steps that Georgia has made in terms of economic development. I would also like to convey the gratitude of the Turkish people for saving 3 Turkish sailors that were held captive in Somalia and returning them home as well as the assistance of Georgia in the earthquake matter of Turkey. This is my first time in Georgia and I don’t feel like a stranger. You, our President, and the Prime Minister have already opened the road which we, the ministers and businessmen, should widen even more. That is why we have to intensify our economic cooperation. It is very important that movement between our countries is possible with ID cards only and this is your merit. The free trade agreement signed by both countries is also important. We are very grateful for the cooperation in the customs sphere. I hope the one window principle will be operational soon, which will be exemplary for the entire world. Turkey always supports the territorial integrity of Georgia and is always ready to help this country in every way in the process of development. We assist our businessmen in coming to Georgia and investing. Last night, as soon as I arrived in Georgia I met with an investor and what he said shocked me. I was observing the ongoing economic occurrences in Georgia; I am a Minister of Economy after all. The businessman told me that in one day he founded a company, registered it, installed a phone and the internet, and opened a bank account. This speaks of everything and points to everything for the economy of Georgia. I understand this not only as the Minister of Economy, but as a former businessman as well. It is beyond doubt that all of this will return to Georgia and the Georgian people in terms of development” – stated the Minister of Economy of Turkey while talking with the President.
The Minister of Economy of Azerbaijan also spoke about the strategic cooperation and cordial relations between the two countries. Shahin Mustafayev drew attention to the Georgian-Azeri economic-political ties and joint projects with international meaning. He thinks that the two countries have more potential in social economic terms than they are using today. That is why he plans to keep working in this direction in the future.
“The President of Azerbaijan has devoted a lot of meaning to the economic-political relations with Georgia. This relationship is developing successfully and does not only have a partnership meaning. Our cooperation is multi-directional. We cooperate on internal and regional projects as well as international meaning projects. We, Georgia, and Turkey are jointly working on the energy security of Europe and as you noted, we should use our transit potential thoroughly. We think that the opportunity of this will be increased by the Baku-Tbilisi-Kars railway. I would like to note that, aside from this large project, Azeri companies are investing largely in Georgia. 272 Azeri companies are already conducting business here and their total investment is over 800 million USD. Because of them, 7 thousand jobs have been created in Georgia in the last 5 years. This cooperation is deepening even more. This is the policy of the President of Azerbaijan and his social-economic strategy. We think that we have a lot more potential than we are using today and it is imperative that we keep working in this direction” – noted Shahin Mustafayev.
The meeting at the Presidential Palace was also attended by the Minister of Economic Development of Georgia – Vera Kobalia. The Ministers of Economy of all three countries took part in the Business Forum held at the hotel Radisson Today. The delegations of Turkey and Azerbaijan had over 100 members - businessmen working in the agriculture, construction, light production, and finance sectors.