"NABUCCO WILL ONCE MORE REMIND THE EUROPEAN FRIENDS ABOUT THE IMPORTANCE OF TURKEY"

Minister for EU Affairs and Chief Negotiator Egemen Bagis noted that Nabucco project would make Turkey much stronger in its negotiations with the EU and it would once more remind its European friends about the importance of Turkey.

In his speech to members of press after the Nabucco Intergovernmental Agreement Ceremony and Summit, Bagis pointed out that Nabucco project was not only a natural gas pipeline project but also one of the most comprehensive peace and stability projects which was achieved so far.

Reminding Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan's expression "Turkey will join the EU not to be a burden on it but to relieve it of its burden", Bagis said "Signatures which have been put here today are the most prominent indicator of this. Because today Nabucco project is one of the most important steps taken towards eliminating the energy crisis which is one of the most serious problems the EU is faced with."

Stating that Nabucco project would eliminate not solely the energy crisis of Europe, Bagis continued to say the following:

"When we think about the project, the end point is Austria which is one of the most experienced countries of the EU. When we consider the transition points, they are mostly the new members of the EU and after that a candidate country which is conducting negotiations with the EU and when you look at the starting points, they are Caucasian and Central Asian countries which are addressees of the Eastern Partnership Project which the EU nowadays is trying to build. In other words, on the one hand Nabucco is a project which establishes the past and future of the EU. We once more see that the bridge between the past and future of Europe is Turkey."

Indicating that Turkey was always a part of the solution not a part of the problem concerning various problems the EU faced, Bagis noted that Turkey played a key role in the resolution of many problems of the EU.

Bagis said "The step which has been taken today with the Nabucco project will once more show Europe the importance of Turkey" and he added:

"While playing such an important role in the resolution of the energy crisis which is one of the most comprehensive problems of Europe, it is thought-provoking for us that our country hasn't yet been able to open the energy chapter. I am sure that 26 members of the EU will inspire a country which isn't affected by the energy crisis as much as them and which doesn't experience energy problem to put an end to political pressure it brings. This is our expectation from them. We stated from the very beginning that the opening of the energy chapter wasn't a precondition for the Nabucco project. However, our expectation regarding this issue is ultimately an expectation of our public which is a democratic country."

Reminding that when AK Party came to power in 2002 they stated that Turkey would be an energy corridor, Bagis said that some had just laughed at this statement in that time but with all the projects achieved, everyone saw that how Turkey transformed into a centre.Resource: AA