President of the Republic of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev received credentials of newly appointed Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of Canada Kevin Hamilton on July 1, Caspian Energy Media reports with reference to the official website of the President of Azerbaijan.

President of the Republic of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev received credentials of newly appointed Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the Kyrgyz Republic Maksat Mamytkanov, Caspian Energy Media reports with reference to the official website of the President of Azerbaijan.

1 iyul 2024-cü il tarixindən "Competo" MMC-nin (Umico brendi) yeni baş icraçı director vəzifəsinə Rauf Qulaməliyev təyin olunub.

Qeyd edək ki, Rauf Qulaməliyev Korporativ Maliyyə üzrə Magistr dərəcəsini bitirdikdən sonra 2015-ci ildə “PAŞA Holding” MMC-yə qoşulub və 1 iyul 2024-cü il tarixinə qədər Ekosistemin İnkişaf Strategiyası üzrə rəhbər vəzifəsində çalışıb.

Caspian Energy Media Marja.az-a istinadən xəbər verir ki, o,Umico Bonus, Umico Market və m10 kimi məhsulların ərsəyə gəlməsində birbaşa iştirak edib və bu məhsulların uğurunda mühüm rol oynayıb. Bununla yanaşı, R. Qulaməliyev, Uklon, Trendyol və Bakıkart kimi uğurlu tərəfdaşlıqları birbaşa olaraq idarə edib.

Caspian Energy (CE):  Your Excellency, as a newly appointed diplomat, how would you assess the current economic relations of Uzbekistan and Turkmenistan, and the dynamics of investment and trade relations of these countries with the EU, Baltic region and Latvia?

Mihails Popkovs, Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the Latvian Republic to Uzbekistan and Turkmenistan: In my opinion, the current state and prospects of development of economic relations between the Republic of Uzbekistan and Turkmenistan are closely associated with the changes which are generally taking place in the Central Asian region.

In the last two years we have seen a positive dynamics and improvement of mutual cooperation between the region’s countries in the most different fields. It is an activation of the political dialogue between the leaders of the Central Asian states on a wide range of issues, and a rapid expansion of inter-regional economic and business contacts, border trade, humanitarian, cultural relations, etc.

At the same time, we see an increasing willingness and a mutual desire to discuss constructively such sensitive issues, which for various reasons went underground during the long years, both in bilateral relations between the Central Asian countries and in the context of the regional cooperation. It, in particular, includes issues on bringing together efforts in ensuring regional security, coordination in the field of development of regional transport and logistics projects, issues of joint water management, delimitation and demarcation of certain segments of borders, activation of regional, trade cooperation, including border trade, environmental issues related to the Aral Sea problem and a number of other problems.

It is important to note that these processes take place in the face of economic and administrative reforms implemented by the countries of the region. We are witnessing it particularly clearly in the case of the Republic of Uzbekistan where the public administration system is undergoing active reforming at the initiative of President S.Mirziyev, broad economic and social reforms are being implemented, a program of support for innovations and modern technologies has been declared. The European politicians and experts are, of course, monitoring all these trends. As a country which considers the relations with the Eastern Partnership and Central Asian states one of the priorities of its foreign policy, Latvia is closely following these processes, and we are pleased to note that these positive changes in the Central Asian region are already reflected not only in improvement of the general atmosphere of cooperation between the countries in the region but also in rapid growth of mutual trade.

In the last year and a half, the trade growth between Uzbekistan and its neighbors, including Turkmenistan, has been a good example in this regard as the trade with neighbors is a powerful driver of the economic development, especially in the frontier regions.

I would like to highlight that Latvia, which has broad experience in implementation of reforms, provided and keeps lending broad support through our experts and specialists to the Central Asian countries in a variety of areas such as higher and special education, integrated management of border security, administrative and communal reforms, use of green technologies, wastes processing and many more.

These programmes are being implemented in the Central Asian countries both in bilateral basis and with funding from the European Union and other leading international organizations – United Nations Development Program (UNDP), US Agency for International Development (USAID) and a number of others.

CE: What is the main objective of your mission? How to increase  the turnover?

Mihails Popkovs: Briefly, the objective of any diplomatic mission is to advance interests of their country, protect interests of their citizens, promote development of comprehensive and mutually beneficial business relations, cooperation at the agency and expert level, and development of humanitarian and cultural contacts between the peoples.

The Latvian embassy in Tashkent is a regional embassy. In addition to the Republic of Uzbekistan, we have been accredited in the Republic of Tajikistan and Turkmenistan. Accordingly, we are representing interests of the Latvian Republic in these three countries of the region.

The turnover volume of Latvia with individual countries of the region is different. Due to business contacts which were established historically and have been developed in recent years between businessmen, to date, the most active trade cooperation has been maintained with the Republic of Uzbekistan. Uzbekistan is indeed a major foreign economic partner of Latvia in Central Asia, and it is encouraging that our economic cooperation is developing consecutively in the most various fields. It is also a mutually beneficial trade, where the Latvian medications have a higher percentage, it is different machines and mechanisms, as well as Uzbek textile, vegetables and fruit, including dried fruit. It is also an activity of joint enterprises in such areas as logistics and transport, pharmaceuticals, production of a number of innovative products, for instance, electric cars, etc.

Talking about the trade relations with the Republic of Tajikistan and Turkmenistan, unfortunately, we still have to often use the “untapped potential” word combination, primarily driven by logistical and a number of other particularities. Besides the official ceremonies held on a high level in the course of my accredited visits to Dushanbe and Ashgabat in November of 2018, in order to activate overall contacts we met with representatives of relevant line agencies of these countries -those were ministries of foreign affairs, economy and foreign trade. At these meetings, not only were reaffirmed previously marked areas of potentially promising and mutually beneficial cooperation, but issues of their consistent progress in the very near future were discussed in detail - through substantive discussion by the intergovernmental commissions for economic cooperation, through mainstreaming logistics and transport projects of mutual interest, intensification of contacts between SME representatives, etc.

In particular, upon instructions from the Ministry of Transport of Latvia, in Ashgabat I discussed with the Turkmen colleagues a proposal about creation of the special transport group within the framework of the Intergovernmental Commission for Economic Cooperation. I also passed an invitation to the Turkmen side, addressed to the officials of the transport sector of Turkmenistan and inviting them to visit Latvia in the very near future in order to discuss in detail specific promising lines of cooperation, in particular, a possibility of resuming direct air flight between Riga and Ashgabat, and opening of the direct railway container route.

Given that the Riga international airport, airports of Ashgabat and the city of Turkmenbashi are quite big regional logistical hubs on the Eurasian routes, we think that the matter of direct air cargo transportation is extremely promising.

CE: How would you assess the results of the latest negotiations held between EU, Turkmenistan and Azerbaijan, and dedicated to the TransCaspian gas pipeline? Are the European Union and Latvia interested in construction of the new gas pipeline from Turkmenistan to the EU in parallel to the Southern Gas Corridor? 

Mihails Popkovs: The European Union has, over the years, consistently upheld the concept of diversification of the energy resources supply to its market, and Latvia fully supports such approach as it is a key element to ensure energy security of Europe, leveling objective and perceived risks of dependence on individual suppliers.

It is no coincidence that while discussing a new European strategy of further relationship development with the Central Asian countries, which we expect to be adopted by mid of the 2019, we and our EU partners attach such a big importance to accelerated development of transport, logistics, communication, information and other forms of communication which should qualitatively improve global integration of the Central Asian region into the world markets. In English it is expressed by a single comprehensive word “Connectivity”. I have no doubt that improvement of such global integration is capable of giving strong momentum not only to the economic development but also to strengthening of stability and security of the entire Central Asian region, including geographically close Afghanistan. Meanwhile, it is important to understand that wanting, political will, resources of one or even several countries do not always suffice when implementing projects of this size. Projects of this kind are very expensive. Therefore, their economic viability and payback period should be thoroughly calculated for the long term, taking into account all possible factors and risks. Besides, such projects provide the need to involve leading international companies and financial institutions possessing required technologies and resources. For the EU, development of the Southern Gas Corridor has been one of the priority projects in the field of energy. For a long period the issue concerning possible engagement of Turkmenistan in this project was held back due to the uncertainty of the Caspian status. It is encouraging that the Caspian Convention, which provided legal possibilities to consider the options of involving Turkmenistan with its rich natural gas reserves in the Southern Gas Corridor, was finally signed in August of 2018 after negotiations which lasted almost 20 years. I think, for Turkmenistan, participation in the Southern Gas Corridor will be an important element of diversification of its export flows.

CE:  Uzbekistan is actively developing transport lines in the direction of Pakistan and the Chinese market. What is the potential of this transport route in terms of inter-regional cooperation?

Mihails Popkovs: I have partially touched this topic, replying to the previous questions. We follow closely the progress of the reforms in the Republic of Uzbekistan and see that improvement of relations with regional neighbors, increase of the investment attractiveness of the country, entry into the new promising trade markets, introduction of innovative technologies and development of modern production are the major priorities of the sustainable development concept adopted and implemented in the country. Like other countries of the European Union, Latvia, for its part, is supporting the process of these reforms as they will not only help Uzbekistan to raise living conditions and welfare of its citizens, but also have a positive and stabilizing impact on the whole Central Asian region, which ultimately serves the purpose of creation and development of reliable and effective Eurasian transport corridors, as well as will serve to ensure regional and global stability and security.

As far as the development of individual projects and transport routes are concerned, I am sure that the Government of the Republic of Uzbekistan perfectly understands the importance of increase of the transit potential of its country and is thoroughly analyzing all financial, economic, political and other factors which can contribute into the progress of individual projects.

CE: Do you plan to promote the development of small and medium business? 

Mihails Popkovs: Small and medium business forms the basis of economies and serves as an important guarantee of stable and sustainable development of many developed countries of the world. Latvia is not an exception, where the share of small and medium business in the country’s GDP exceeds 70%.

In my opinion, creation of necessary conditions for successful development of small and medium business plays, in general, a pivotal role not only in the success of economic reforms in particular sectors but also in solution of the employment problem and reforming of social sphere. We have learned that from our own experience, implementing a program of reforms in Latvia. Therefore, when implementing so called development projects which I mentioned at the beginning of the interview, we and our partners from different programs of the European Union, UNDP and others, are placing emphasis on involvement and participation of small and medium business representatives in settlement of those specific practical tasks which must be addressed in certain regions and provinces of the Central Asian states in the frame of concrete projects.

Let’s just say, the Uzbek representative office of the CLEANTEСН LATVIA cluster, which brings together the leading enterprises of Latvia operating in the field of green technologies, held a number of seminars for employees of local governments and entrepreneurs in different regions of Uzbekistan. The seminars were dedicated to matters of more active involvement of small and medium business in the processing of household waste, and introduction of innovative and efficient technologies into this area. Another example relates to the arrangement of the cycle of consultations held for local farmers by the Latvian experts in the field of standardization and certification of agricultural products, and concerning introduction of the European technologies ensuring quality of production, storage, transportation and processing of a number of agricultural products. The consultations were organized with the support of local governments of the Tashkent and Fergan regions.

Besides, speaking of the activity of joint ventures, according to our observation, it is small and medium businesses of Latvia which are often the most active and successful in establishing business contacts and implementing competitive business projects in Central Asia.

CE: Uzbekistan is developing the Silk visa project (similar to the Schengen) together with Kyrgyzstan and inviting other Central Asian and even Caucasian countries into this project. What do Latvia and EU think of this project?

Mihails Popkovs: As far as I know, this initiative is still at a preliminary stage of development. It is still not quite clear whether this is about trying to develop and introduce a single visa or initiators of the idea are ready to go further towards the creation of the single visa zone and abolishment of the border control inside of it just like the EU countries did it in due time within the framework of the Schengen Treaty.

However, mainstreaming simplification of procedures for entry into the region’s countries by a single visa certainly deserves attention as it fits organically into the strategy of the regional integration improvement outlined above.

Drawing parallels with the experience of creation of the European Schengen zone and introduction of the single Schengen visa, it must be remembered that in addition to achievement of political agreements between the countries participants, preparation and signing of relevant conceptual agreements by them, it was also a long, quite complex, time-consuming technical process which required collective coherence, long painstaking work and clear work coordination among many interested agencies of the Schengen zone member states  - border, migration, consular, judicial, technical and other services.

Meanwhile, I am convinced that introduction of the single visa considerably will promote the development of the tourism industry in Central Asian countries, which has a huge potential, as well as have a positive impact on activation of business and humanitarian contacts, and contribute to the increase of the investment attractiveness both of certain countries and the region in general. 

Thank you for the interview

Caspian Energy (CE): Your Excellency, Kazakhstan is one of the largest regional markets among the Caspian region countries. What advantages do you see in this for the growth of the investment potential and turnover between the two countries, as well as between the Central Asian and Baltic region in general? In which sectors do you see a key potential?

Jurijs Pogrebnyak, Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of Latvia to Kazakhstan: Our bilateral economy is developing steadily. There are no serious failures, neither is an economic breakthrough. In the first half of 2018, the volume of the bilateral trade reduced by 2.34% as compared to the same period of 2017. It means that we don’t use the entire potential of the trade-economic cooperation. A more diversified export market will help Kazakhstan to increase trade flows and at the same time ensure sustainability towards the econo­mic shocks. Organization of transit and logistical services, vehicular and railway transportation, air transportation, cooperation in introduction of digital and green technologies, as well as traditional sectors such as food products, pharmaceuticals, agriculture and tourism are prospects of cooperation between Latvia and the region. Cooperation in the field of higher education is another promising area.

We are particularly pleased that a direct regular air flight has been opened between Latvia and Kazakhstan. Since April 29 the airBaltic company has started making regular flights between Riga and Almaty three times a week (in summer season).

CE:  How does Kazakhstan’s participation in the Eurasian Economic Union (EEU) contribute to the investment turnover and trade relations with the EU and Latvia? 

Jurijs Pogrebnyak: Bilateral trade relations of Latvia are closely linked to the trade policy of the European Union (EU). The expanded agreement on partnership and cooperation is regulating trade relations between the EU and Kazakhstan. While the EU is considering possibilities of cooperation with the EEU, we cannot, at this stage, pass sentence regarding its economic impact. 

In the last 28 years, we have established close cooperation between Latvia and Kazakhstan, based on mutual understanding and common vision of prerequisites required for modern development: transparency and mutual respect. It promotes successful economic cooperation which promotes strong platform for further joint achievements.

Kazakhstan is a large trade partner of Latvia in the region. Kazakhstan has wonderful advantages such as a well-developed infrastructure, as well as relations with China and neighbor countries of Central Asia. In our case, given our perfect geographic location and developed infrastructure, Latvia is a bridge into the broader north-European region.

Geographic advantages and fruitful cooperation between Latvia and Kazakhstan is the key towards the cooperation of our countries. At present, Kazakhstan is the 23rd in the rating of foreign direct investments of Latvia. Latvia and Kazakhstan have 174 joint ventures. In general, it is a good indicator.

CE: What role has the Caspian status settlement played or will play in bilateral economic and business relations? 

Jurijs Pogrebnyak: The agreement on the Caspian Sea status will open a new chapter of cooperation in the field of transport, trade and energy for the region and the whole world. New opportunities and an organized business environment always attract new investments.

CE: How do you see the possibility of building bridge systems connecting the eastern and western shores of the Caspian Sea? How can it contribute to the development of economies of the two regions? 

Jurijs Pogrebnyak: It is, certainly, serious intentions and big investments which require a thorough study and careful thought. But such modernization of transportation networks will facilitate cross-border trade and transport flows.

CE: Do Latvia and EU plan, in general, to increase purchase of Kazakhstani energy resources?  

Jurijs Pogrebnyak: At present, the EU is actively working over diversification of sources and routes of gas supply, including the development of the Southern Gas Corridor. Accordingly, we are open to new, competitive proposals on energy supply.

CE: How are the transport lines developing within the framework of the Viking and Zubr projects? Is their further development in the direction of South-East Asia (China, India, Pakistan, etc) possible?

Jurijs Pogrebnyak: Container train “Zubr” which provides entry from the Black Sea region into North Europe is one of the stable projects of cooperation. Transportation commenced in 2009. The route is based on cooperation of the Latvian, Belarusian and Ukrainian railway companies in the field of freight forwarding and transport. Unlike the Viking route (it provides a link to the port of Klaipeda), Zubr route provides a link to a much broader region – Latvia, Estonia and Scandinavia. Regular ferry lines link ports of Latvia and Estonia with Stockholm, Helsinki and Travemunde. Besides, several container lines and ro-ro lines link ports of Latvia to other ports of the Baltic and North seas. In 2017, Zubr container train transported 6,435 TEU containers, which is 40% higher than the figure of 2016. The highest volume of cargoes is transported along the Latvian and Belarusian railways.

At the same time, the Latvian railway enterprise LDZ Logistics Ltd is actively working to fill in the railway route with the “Baltica Tranzit” container train in 2018. The route of container transportation links the Baltic countries with the Central Asian countries (Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Turkmenistan, Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan). 

Latvia considers Central Asia one of the priority regions for cooperation in the context of development of transport corridors, and Kazakhstan plays one of the key roles in this cooperation. Cooperation between Latvia and Kazakhstan in the field of transport and logistics, including the development of the transport corridor, is very active. We are supporting an activity promoting further development of corridors in the direction of China, India, Afghanistan and Pakistan. It will strengthen Kazakhstan as a transit country and create opportunities for additional cargo transportation, including between Kazakhstan and Latvia.

Thank you for the interview

Caspian Energy (CE):  Your Excellency, the Caspian Sea and the Baltic, Azerbaijan and Latvia are the regions located far from each other. What has already been done and what remains to be done to achieve the economic convergence between the two regions and countries? What is the main problem in the present economic relations? 

Juris Maklakovs, Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of Latvia to the Republic of Azerbaijan:  Thank you for providing me an opportunity to share my views, experience and knowledge. I would like to note that on 11 January 2019, Latvia and Azerbaijan marked the 25th anniversary of establishment of diplomatic relations between the two states. Pretty much has been done throughout these 25 years. I will still stick to what I have said throughout the previous three years of my stay in Azerbaijan that we have established very good mutual relations on the political level, as evidenced by the signed agreements. In particular, I would like to highlight the Agreement on strategic partnership which was signed last year during the official visit of Azerbaijan’s President Ilham Aliyev to Latvia. During the visit, signed were also 5 agreements in the field of education, medicine, tourism, environment and other areas. We are working in the economic direction in order to improve the turnover. There are positive indicators. For instance, a Trade House of Azerbaijan in Latvia was opened in summer of 2018. 120 tonnes of the Azerbaijani agricultural products were supplied to Latvia in the first 6 months of 2018. The trade house provided an opportunity for business development because a platform for viewing goods and discussing issues of their export to Latvia has been established. Of course, the Trade House has just started operating and this process needs time to gain momentum and showcase real and tangible results.

In the meantime, speaking about reasons which slow down economic cooperation, I would like to note a few moments. For instance, a distance plays an important role in development of our trade relations. There is a Riga-Baku direct air flight, but it functions only for 6 months. In 2018 the flights were made for the first time from May till October. It is necessary to have this flight operating for the whole year.

The second moment concerns visas. Both Latvian and Azerbaijani citizens need visas to visit both Latvia and Azerbaijan. It slows down the development of tourism. Nevertheless, according to the feedback of those who applied for visas, the work of the newly introduced ASAN Visa is effective. If you ask a Latvian tourist which South Caucasian country he-she would like to visit, Georgia will probably be the first country as there is no visa required for going there. Besides, direct flights to Georgia are made all year round, while in the direction of Baku they are made no more than 6 months a year.

There is one more important factor left. We still know very few about each other. The following fact has surprised me. We invited 10 representatives of well-known Latvian tour operators and journalists to Baku. In the positive sense, they were very surprised and amazed at everything they saw here. They admired the history, architecture, art, traditions and the Azeri cuisine. That is to say, Latvian residents, even those who are engaged in tourism did not have information about the tourism potential of Azerbaijan. This suggests that we should work harder and more effectively over distribution of information about countries among the population, and familiarize residents of our countries with the tourism opportunities. It will create momentum for mutual tourist travels, establishment of new contacts and business relations. Despite the existing problems, we will stay positive and make all efforts to solve these matters. We will not reduce the distance between our countries, but realizing an idea about direct Riga-Baku air flight all year round is quite real. This can be seen also in figures showing an 80% increase of the air travelers in 2018 vs 2017. Of course, the increase of the period of flights from 3 up to 5.5 months in 2018 also contributed into this indicator. But it also implies that the flight is needed.

I am pleased to note about the establishment of good and stable relations between our countries, but we should continue working to increase turnover and ensure further development of economic relations. There are thoughts, projects and opportunities. We only need to realize them.

CE: In which areas are there joint projects?

Juris Maklakovs: For instance, milkmen from Azerbaijan applied to me in order to develop projects in this field. I also would like to note that architects and representatives of the restaurant business from Latvia are now working actively and fruitfully in Baku.

As a small country, Latvia is more oriented towards the small and medium business. We have a lot of small businesses where the number of workers does not exceed 20-30 people. Azerbaijan is trying to seek large entrepreneurs for cooperation and interested in large projects and investments. In the meantime, objectives to diversify and develop small and medium business have been set. And it is this area where we can successfully develop cooperation as well. There must be more interaction and cooperation between small and medium employers of our countries.

Negotiations on strategic partnership are now underway with the European Union, which features very many integral parts, many economic issues and nuances regarding the “free market”.

CE:  What is the situation regarding the bilateral trade turnover? Has the declining trend been stopped? What is the size of mutual investments of the two countries? 

Juris Maklakovs:  Goods turnover between our countries totaled 15.55million euros within 9 months of 2018. It rose by 20.64% (or by 2.66 million euros) as compared to the same period of 2017. It is a positive exchange of goods for Latvia. Of the total amount, the size of export from Latvia to Azerbaijan makes 15.36 million euros and the growth over this period totaled 3.56 million euros. That is to say, the size of export carried out by the Latvian entrepreneurs to Azerbaijan is much more than the size of import (186,857 euros).

It means that the assortment and the volume of products presented in the Trade House of Azerbaijan in Latvia should be extended and it is necessary to make more efforts to increase export of goods and services from Azerbaijan to Latvia, especially when there is a potential for that.

As far as direct investments are concerned, 12 million euros have been invested in Latvia in the 6 months of 2018, while less than 1 million euro has been invested into Azerbaijan. Now there are about 130 enterprises operating in Latvia jointly with the Azerbaijani entrepreneurs.  There is no such amount of joint ventures operating in Azerbaijan.

CE:  What stage has the development of the Zubr, Viking and Baku-Tbilisi-Kars projects reached? Do the Baltic companies see necessity in this today?

Juris Maklakovs:  For many years I have heard political statements on this issue, but something has to be transported in order to make these linkages. In addition to the political will, there must be agreements signed. Entrepreneurs, who will be engaged in transportation and be interested in making this transportation, should be attracted and worked with. And it is preferable to have transportation running in both directions. If there is no cargo and demand for transportation but only a desire and a transport corridor, it will not suffice. There should be relevant agreements, contracts and accordingly a real demand for making this transportation within the framework of mentioned projects.

Nevertheless, Latvia is interested in transit of goods from China and India to the Latvian ports, using the North-South transport corridor.

These issues are being solved and in summer of 2018 Riga hosted interstate negotiations. In the course of the negotiations the Minister of Transport of Latvia and Deputy Minister of Economy of Azerbaijan discussed issues of transit. The parties expressed a wish to work harder in this direction to increase cargo flow on these lines. Negotiations are held also on the level of railway agencies of these two countries.

CE:  How do you coordinate your work with the representation of the EU in Azerbaijan and to what extent is this interaction effective?

Juris Maklakovs: I think that the European Union is working very actively, as evidenced by the conduction of negotiations on the new agreement, which can be completed next year. The EU states represented in Azerbaijan are taking an active part in the joint discussions, conduct regular discussions and consultations on current issues. We are trying to raise awareness of the Azerbaijani community about the work carried out during the trips to regions, for instance, to Nakhchivan, Lankaran, Shaki, Ganja and other regions. 

The EU countries are participating in many so called twinning-projects. Now Latvia is involved in two such projects which help to improve the system of education and certification. Other projects had also been implemented prior to that, including security and construction projects. Many leaders of the European countries visited Azerbaijan in 2018. Negotiations starting from implementation of large energy and investment issues up to small projects were held. That is to say, the European Union is working actively and well.

CE:  Latvia is firmly linked to the energy markets of Estonia and Lithuania, as well as Poland and Finland. What are the today’s components of the energy security of Latvia and the Baltic region in general? How do you see the role of the Caspian region?

Juris Maklakovs: Matters of security and diversification of energy resources have been very relevant in the recent times both for the European Union and for Latvia as the EU member. Therefore, we are in favor of the diversification and are favorably disposed to the Southern Gas Corridor, TANAP and TAP projects because it provides an opportunity to supply gas to the European Union. The Baltic countries are striving to have similar gas prices in this region and little difference between them. A coordinating council, which is working over linking the gas system of the north countries with the Baltic region through connecting gas systems of Finland and Estonia, was created in the Baltic countries in 2015. This project has already been launched. It is planned that gas system of Finland will be linked to that of Estonia in 2020-2022. In this way, gas systems of the three Baltic countries will be linked to one another. Liquefied gas terminal has been built in Lithuania. Negotiations on their connection to general regional system are underway between Latvia and Lithuania. Therefore, we look positive at having the Southern Gas Corridor project completed and having gas from Azerbaijan delivered to the European Union because gas which is to be supplied to the European Union will also be available to Latvia and the Baltic states.

CE: How is it going with the development of relations in the field of tourism? Which necessary measures have already been taken and which ones are still left?

Juris Maklakovs: My talks with the travel operators which visited Azerbaijan in October 2018 show that Latvian large tourism companies do not have enough information about the tourism potential of Azerbaijan. People engaged in tourism business were pleasantly surprised with the tourism potential of Azerbaijan – even despite the fact that within a three day of their stay in Azerbaijan they managed to see only Baku and its vicinities. The Gobustan state historical reservation, located 60km of Baku, was the most distant point visited by them.

But the tourism potential of Azerbaijan is not limited to Baku and the Absheron peninsula. One can visit south districts – Lankaran, Astara, north districts, especially Shaki where there are lots of interesting things, and many other parts of the country. After the Latvian journalists have visited Azerbaijan, very many fascinating and interesting articles were published in Latvia telling about what impression a trip to Azerbaijan and Baku made on them, how they familiarized with traditions of the Azerbaijani people and the Azeri cuisine. These articles placed in the internet portals, journals and newspapers are very positive. I believe that those who have read these articles will definitely remember that while planning holiday for the next year.

Therefore we should tell more about Latvia here and Azerbaijan should raise, where possible, the awareness of the Latvian community about the tourism potential in Azerbaijan. Speaking about tourism, first of all we should focus efforts on spread of information, which will lead to further development of tourism.

Secondly, it is necessary to have a direct Riga-Baku air flight operating all year round. I know that AirBaltic together with AZAL plan to make flights for 6 months next year. I hope that indicators of the next year will let take a right decision and open a direct flight all year round. It will give momentum to activation of processes in the tourism field.

CE:  Trade house of Azerbaijan has been opened in Riga since July. Are there plans on opening Trade House of Latvia in Azerbaijan? What work is carried out in this direction?

Juris Maklakovs:  Yes, this issue has been discussed quite recently. The enterprises which are ready to deliver here their products have already been determined. Shipment of the Latvian products to the Azeri market started in 2018. They are sold in several trade points of Baku and Azerbaijan. It is Latvian candies, canned fish, meat and dairy products. Latvian goods are sold both in specialized shops and in the large supermarket chains. It shows that there are all preconditions for opening of the Trade House. Latvian entrepreneurs have already started supplying products - it is a part of the project which was launched in summer 2018 when the Trade House of Azerbaijan in Latvia opened.  The thing is that the work on attraction of Latvian entrepreneurs for supply of products to Baku was commenced in parallel. Now we are discussing a matter on provision of the space for the Trade House where it will be possible to showcase the whole assortment of Latvian products coming to Azerbaijan and advertise new products.

We anticipate that it is the Trade House in Azerbaijan with which network supermarkets will be able to sign, in future, relevant agreements for supply of Latvian products. In near future we plan to invite a large group of entrepreneurs to Azerbaijan, who are engaged in logistics and transportation. A matter of coordination of transportation between the two trade houses will be discussed. It is important to have the transport, delivering cargoes from Latvia to Azerbaijan and vice versa, loaded equally in both directions. In this way, it will minimize transportation costs and optimize prices for sold products.  

I really hope that the Trade House similar to the one operating in Riga will be opened in Baku next year. The Trade House will provide a broad assortment of products and be a place for entrepreneurs to sign mutually beneficial agreements for supply of products. It will also let increase the turnover volume between the countries.

CE: Biomass-based production is actively developing in Latvia. What will be the role of the renewable energy market in the energy balance of Latvia?

Juris Maklakovs: It is a very topical issue, the discussion of which is getting more active at the meetings of national leaders at all levels. If we look at the indicators of use of alternative sources of energy among the EU countries, Latvia is the third after Sweden and Finland.

Water resources of the country are actively used in the power production of Latvia. But in recent years there has been a stable trend of development of such types of energy as biomass, biogas, wind and solar energy. Thus, generation of alternative sources of energy in Latvia, including water sources, shall make 40% of common indicators by 2020. Noteworthy here is that this indicator in the EU countries makes 14-17%.

I would like to say that Minister of Ecology and Natural Resources Mukhtar Babayev is a new co-chair of the Azerbaijan-Latvia Intergovernmental Commission from the Azerbaijan’s side. We have already discussed issues related to development of alternative energy sources with the minister and he is expected to visit Latvia early in 2019. We will show him where and how we use biogas and biomass for energy production. Besides, waste processing is one of the issues that are of interest to the Azerbaijani side. Very good results have been achieved in Latvia in this direction. For instance, a project on waste processing at the landfill has been implemented, where biogas is produced out of waste treatment and used for heating hothouses where delicious tomatoes and cucumbers are grown up. It is one of the projects which we often mention and share with this positive experience. We will also introduce this project to the minister of Azerbaijan. 

This experience of Latvia can be actively used in many countries, including in Azerbaijan. And we are ready to share this experience.

Thank you for the interview

Energetika naziri Pərviz Şahbazov İtaliyanın Milan şəhərində Yaşıl Enerji Keçidi Konqresi çərçivəsində keçirilən nazirlər panelində əsas məruzəçi olaraq COP29 öncəsi Azərbaycanın milli enerji strategiyasına dair çıxış edib.

Nazir Pərviz Şahbazov müzakirələr zamanı Azərbaycan, BƏƏ və Braziliyadan ibarət üçlük mexanizmi,  2025-ci ildən sonrakı dövr üçün iqlim maliyyəsi üzrə yeni kollektiv kəmiyyət hədəfinin razılaşdırılması, iqlim fəaliyyəti üzrə çoxtərəfli dialoqun effektiv olması üçün qarşılıqlı etimad, məsuliyyətin və maliyyə imkanlarının ədalətli bölgüsünün təmin edilməsi kimi məsələlərdən də bəhs edib.

Daha ətraflı

Çindən Türkiyəyə Orta Dəhliz üzərindən yeni marşrutla ilk yük qatarı yola salınıb.

Caspian Energy Media ADY-yə istinadən xəbər verir ki, məişət əşyaları və gündəlik tələbat malları yüklənmiş 110 konteynerdən ibarət ilk qatar 28 iyunda Çinin Ciansu əyalətinin paytaxtı Nankin şəhərindən Mərkəzi Asiya–Xəzər dənizi–Azərbaycan–Gürcüstan marşrutu ilə İstanbul şəhərinə yola düşüb.

Hazırda Mərkəzi Asiya, Xəzər dənizi, Azərbaycan, Gürcüstan və Qara dəniz üzərindən keçməklə Çin və Avropa arasında yükdaşımalar bir neçə istiqamət üzrə həyata keçirilir.

Mərkəzi Bankın sədri Taleh Kazımovun rəhbərlik etdiyi nümayəndə heyətinin Tacikistan Respublikasına işgüzar səfəri başlayıb.

Caspian Energy Media AMB-yə istinadən xəbər verir ki, iyul ayının 3-dək davam edəcək səfər zamanı nümayəndə heyətinin Düşənbə şəhərində keçiriləcək Dünya Bankı və Beynəlxalq Valyuta Fondunun Seçki Qrupunun Toplantısı çərçivəsində bir sıra tədbirlərdə və ikitərəfli görüşlərdə iştirakı nəzərə tutulub.

Caspian Energy (CE): Г-н Президент,  в 2018 году Азербайджан и Латвия отмечали 100-летие независимости и являются стратегическими партнерами.  Каким Вы видите будущее отношений с Азербайджаном и другими странами Каспийского региона? Что мешает развиваться экономическим отношениям более эффективно? 

Президент Латвийской Республики Раймондс Вейонис: Азербайджан является важным партнером Латвии в регионе Южного Кавказа. Тесное сотрудничество было установлено не только между лидерами наших стран, но и парламентами, правительствами, местными органами власти и другими учреждениями.

В январе 2019 года отмечалось 25-летие установления дипломатических отношений между Латвией и Азербайджаном. В ходе официального визита Президента Азербайджана в Латвию в июне 2017 года была подписана Декларация о стратегическом партнерстве, что способствовало выведению наших отношений на новый уровень сотрудничества. Существует огромный потенциал для дальнейшего расширения наших отношений, особенно в экономической и торговой сферах. Текущий двусторонний товарооборот не отражает реальный экономический потенциал между нашими странами. Инвестиции в малый и средний бизнес принесли бы большую пользу нашим экономическим отношениям.

CE: Какой потенциал существует для азербайджанских инвесторов и наоборот?

Раймондс Вейонис: Латвийские компании в Азербайджане работают в целом ряде секторов, включая такие сферы как финансовые, консалтинговые и юридические услуги, транспорт и логистика, инжиниринг, информационные технологии и телекоммуникации, производство продуктов питания, архитектура, строительство, строительные материалы, обработка древесины, химикаты, фармацевтика, сферы туризма и образования. Латвия заинтересована в расширении этого сотрудничества. Основной экспорт из Азербайджана в Латвию приходится на продукты питания, пластмассовые и резиновые изделия, а также на механическое и электрическое оборудование.

Мы рады, что в 2018 году Азербайджан решил открыть Торговый дом в Риге, чтобы облегчить торговые и экономические связи с Латвией. Азербайджан выразил заинтересованность в развитии сотрудничества с Латвией в пищевой, фармацевтической и промышленной сферах и создании совместных сельскохозяйственных предприятий. Для расширения нашего сотрудничества в сфере транзитных услуг приветствуются инвестиции в латвийские порты и центры логистики.

CE: Рассматривает ли Латвия вопросы подключения к расширяющимся транспортным транзитным артериям, таким как Север-Юг и Баку-Тбилиси-Карс, одним из основных инициаторов которых является Азербайджан?

Раймондс Вейонис: Латвия заинтересована в сотрудничестве с Азербайджаном по развитию  наземных транспортных соединениях между Азией, Центральной Азией, Черноморскими странами и Северной Европой. На наш взгляд, через Азербайджан проходят два важных международных транспортных коридора. Первый это международный коридор Север-Юг с ответвлением к региону Балтийского моря. Второй - транспортный коридор Европа-Кавказ-Азия (ТРАСЕКА), который является частью нового Шелкового пути и создает стратегическую связь между Каспийским морем и Черным морем. Поэтому Латвия считает Азербайджан очень важным партнером для развития новых транспортных маршрутов в Евразии.

Улучшение транспортных сетей и инфраструктуры также является приоритетом политики Восточного партнерства Европейского Союза, которую мы активно поддерживаем. Латвия и Азербайджан имеют общие интересы в железнодорожной и портовой инфраструктуре, и обе стороны извлекают пользу от этого сотрудничества.

CE: Какие глобальные мировые проблемы Вас беспокоят больше всего? Чем завершится Brexit для ЕС по Вашему мнению? Какой вариант выгоден для Латвии и ЕС?

Раймондс Вейонис: Я бы сказал, что отсутствие безопасности и стабильности в некоторых частях Земного шара являются сегодня проблемами, вызывающими наибольшую обеспокоенность. Жить в мире и поддерживать мир в мировом масштабе - это вызов, и в то же время, наша общая цель. Нам необходимо объединить наши усилия для достижения безопасности и процветания. Для отражения этой цели, девизом предыдущего Саммита Восточного партнерства ЕС стал лозунг «Сильнее вместе». Это мощный сигнал взаимной неизменной поддержки. Мы все следим за очень сложным процессом по Brexit. На мой взгляд, если бы Великобритания осталась в ЕС, это стало бы лучшим вариантом для Латвии, ЕС и Соединенного Королевства.

CE: Проблемы использования ГМО, экологии, инновации в экономике четвёртого уровня сегодня в центре внимания всех глобальных лидеров, как решаются эти проблемы в Латвии и ЕС?

Раймондс Вейонис: В ЕС установлены одни из самых строгих, если не самые строгие в мире  требования к оценке и контролю рисков для генетически модифицированных организмов (ГМО).  Эта область является довольно новой, и есть много вопросов о последствиях, вызванных долгосрочным распространением ГМО в окружающей среде. Еврокомиссия рассматривает охрану здоровья и окружающей среды в качестве приоритета и стремится обеспечить, чтобы генномодифицированные продукты, генномодифицированный корм для животных, а также выращивание генномодифицированных культур разрешались только в том случае, если они не оказывают вредного воздействия на здоровье человека, животных или окружающую среду.

Каждая страна - не имеет значения - большая или маленькая, более или менее развитая, должна реагировать на внутренние и внешние вызовы и проводить соответствующие реформы. Я горжусь тем, что Организация экономического сотрудничества и развития (ОЭСР) недавно назвала Латвию - страной лидером по проведению реформ. В 2017 году мы успешно завершили налоговую реформу и создали льготные условия для стартапов.

CE: Какой видят в Европейском союзе роль и значимость Азербайджана, как самой экономически развитой и богатой нефтегазовыми ресурсами страны на Южном Кавказе? Какие проекты могут представлять особую значимость?

Раймондс Вейонис: Латвия всегда поддерживала укрепление отношений между Азербайджаном и Евросоюзом. ЕС делится своей наилучшей практикой и опытом. Безопасность и диверсификация энергоснабжения является одним из приоритетов Европейского Союза. Латвия поддерживает диверсификацию маршрутов поставок энергоносителей в Европу. Мы ценим решающую роль Азербайджана в развитии Южного Газового Коридора.

CE: Каковы перспективы развития сферы туризма между Азербайджаном и Латвией? Наблюдается ли динамика в этом направлении?

Раймондс Вейонис: Мы рады, что наши столицы связаны прямым воздушным сообщением. Латвийские туристы ценят прекрасное азербайджанское гостеприимство и древнюю культуру. Мы замечаем, что латвийские туристы возвращаются в вашу страну год за годом, что является положительным знаком.

В целях развития туризма Латвийское агентство по инвестициям и развитию в 2016 году организовало кампанию по продвижению медицинского туризма из Азербайджана в Латвию. Медицинский туризм является сферой с высокой добавленной стоимостью и привлекает множество клиентов в нашу прекрасную страну.

CE: Вы не раз поднимали вопрос важности открытия регулярных воздушных рейсов между Ригой и Баку. Какой потенциал, на Ваш взгляд, есть для обеспечения регулярности полетов?

Раймондс Вейонис: В летний период латвийская национальная авиакомпания airBaltic выполняет два рейса в неделю между Ригой и Баку. Полеты выполняются в сотрудничестве с авиакомпанией Azal. Учитывая возросший интерес к этому маршруту, в 2018 году airBaltic продлил сезон полетов на 10 недель и планирует сохранить частоту полетов в 2019 году.

Авиаперевозки грузов - еще одно перспективное направление развития. Объем грузов, перевезенных за 10 месяцев 2018 года, почти удвоился. Важно отметить, что воздушные перевозки между нашими странами также способствуют развитию наших аэропортов в качестве транзитных узлов. Латвийские авиационные компании готовы продолжать сотрудничество и увеличивать количество пассажиров и объемы перевозок.

CE: Какие экологические инициативы и проекты, по Вашему мнению, могут быть реализованы, - перевод всех плавающих средств на экологически чистое топливо, строительство совместных энергетических станций в сфере альтернативной энергетики, опреснение воды, использование энергии волн?  Каковы планы Латвии и ее вклад в предотвращение климатических изменений?

Раймондс Вейонис: Латвия является одной из ведущих стран Европы по использованию возобновляемых источников энергии. Доля возобновляемых источников энергии в поставке первичных энергоносителей выросла с 29,6% в 2007 году до 37,2% в 2016 году. Основными источниками энергии являются древесина и вода. Биогаз, солома, ветряная и солнечная энергия также используются, хотя и в меньших объемах.

В 2016 году общий объем выбросов в Латвии был на 57% ниже показателей 1990 года. Для дальнейшего сокращения выбросов Латвия усилит существующие меры по повышению энергоэффективности и переходу на возобновляемые источники энергии. Мы также продолжим работу по декарбонизации транспортного сектора и сокращению выбросов в сельском хозяйстве.

Благодарим за интервью!