Turkey and east Europe push new energy routes

Turkish President Abdullah Gül joined eastern European leaders Friday at a summit in Azerbaijan aimed at promoting energy routes to Europe outside Russian influence.

Amid concern in the region that United States President-elect Barack Obama will see the Caucasus and eastern Europe as less of a priority, a senior U.S. official said at the summit, he expected Washington to stay engaged in the area. The Turkish president joined leaders of Azerbaijan, Georgia, Lithuania, Poland and Ukraine for an energy meeting three months after Russia dropped bombs close to crucial energy routes through the Caucasus state of Georgia in a brief war.

Amid renewed criticism of Russia by Georgian President Mikheil Saakashvili, Gül steered clear of inflammatory rhetoric toward Turkey's historical rival, Moscow.

However, Gül emphasised Turkey's desire as a NATO member for a greater diplomatic role in the region, after his government earlier proposed a new forum for cooperation in the South Caucasus. "The crisis which broke out last August in Georgia confirmed unsolved conflicts in the region constitute a major threat to security and stability," he said.

"Our idea is to transform the South Caucasus, from a region known for conflict, to a region that could set an example for cooperation," Gül said.

Turkey, a close U.S. ally, has become a player in the Middle East and Caucasus energy trade. It has a long history of involvement in the Caucasus, as well as close linguistic and cultural links with Azerbaijan. Russia made clear during the August war in Georgia it considers itself the primary strategic power in the Caucasus.

Saakashvili condemned Russian attacks during the war over South Ossetia, which he said were meant to put in doubt the viability of energy routes through the Caucasus.

"This was clearly meant to send a warning to Europe that no matter what, Russia wants to control Europe's energy supplies," he said.

The leaders of Azerbaijan, Georgia and Ukraine have met regularly to discuss plans to strengthen the corridor of energy routes that pass from the energy-rich Caspian toward Europe, but Friday's meeting was the first time they were joined by Turkey.

U.S. Energy Secretary Samuel Bodman said the conflict in Georgia had shown, "how important it is for Europe to diversify sources of supply," and predicted Washington would remain engaged in the region under Obama.

Nabucco network
"It is my firm belief these efforts and this region of the world will also be a priority for the next administration," he said.

Azerbaijan President Ilham Aliyev, whose energy-rich country is at the centre of the group's efforts, said he was, "looking forward to establishing broader energy partnerships in the region."

He singled out a project to extend Ukraine's Odessa-Brody oil pipeline to allow shipments to Poland's Baltic Sea port of Gdansk as having "good potential." A feasibility study on the project is to be completed by the end of the year. Backed by western governments, international energy firms have invested heavily in building a corridor of oil and gas pipelines from Azerbaijan through Georgia to Turkey.

The European Union is hoping to connect the network to its flagship Nabucco gas pipeline and both the EU and the United States are backing efforts to link Central Asian countries to the network through a trans-Caspian pipeline.