FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
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Azerbaijan Society of America
June 17, 2003
AZERBAIJAN
SOCIETY OF AMERICA ANNOUNCES SUPPORT OF
BAKU-TBILISI-CEYHAN PIPELINE PROJECT
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ASA SAYS ANTI-PIPELINE CAMPAIGNS ARE UNFOUNDED AND UNJUSTIFIED
New Jersey, USA - The Azerbaijan Society of American (ASA) today announced its
support of the proposed Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan(BTC) Pipeline Project and labeled
the current campaigns against the pipeline as unfair.
"The ASA strongly supports the position of the United States and feels
that construction of the BTC pipeline is a positive project that will
benefit many. The organization also feels that the ongoing campaign to
stop the project are unfounded and unjustified as well as detrimental to the
welfare of thousands in the region," said Tomris Azeri, President of the
ASA.
Upon completion, the Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan Pipeline Project would link the three
countries, respectively in Azerbaijan, Georgia and Turkey, and allow the
transport of oil from the oil-producing regions in and around the Caspian Sea
in Azerbaijan. The declaration from ASA, which is headquartered outside
New York City, comes on the heels of a similar pronouncement from VATAN, the
Azerbaijani Society of the United Kingdom.
At immediate issue are statements made recently by Anders Lastgarten of the
Kurdish Human Rights Project at an anti-BTC event at the London School of
Economics on May 28, at which representatives of the Kurdish Human Rights
Project connected the repression of Kurds displaced to Azerbaijan by the
Armenian conflict to the construction of the BTC project.
"We feel that there are regional interests that wish to prevent
Anglo-American involvement in the Caspian area at any expense," said Ms.
Azeri. "The ASA feels that the anti-BTC campaign should center on
positive debate of the direct issues presented by the pipeline, and not cross
over to anti-Azeri, anti-Georgian or anti-Turkish attacks."
The ASA, like many other international organizations, institutions and
individuals, supports the initiation and implementation of the pipeline
project, endorses the BTC Support Campaign, and expresses its agreement and
solidarity with its aims, objectives and goals. Along with its support,
the ASA feels that strict environmental scrutiny and construction standards
must be upheld and that issues such as future maintenance of the pipeline must
be considered.
Oil-rich Azerbaijan is the source of the product which the pipeline will
transport and will be the major beneficiary of the royalties and tax revenue
generated from the project in the coming decades. Georgia and Turkey will
benefit as transit countries that receive gains from tariffs and rent.
Investment in the construction of the pipeline will reap long term ancillary
investment of foreign capital as well as additional in-country developmental
initiatives.
The ASA further points out that, more immediately, Azerbaijan will
benefit from the thousands of local jobs which will be created during the two
year project and that approximately 850 permanent jobs will be filled to
oversee the maintenance of the pipeline after the completion of its
construction.
"It is imperative that Azerbaijan be able to generate these revenues and
jobs so that these funds can boost the national economy and allow the
government to invest in wider social and economic development in the
country," said Ms. Azeri. "At the same time, the involvement of
Western oil corporations will help ensure that the necessary environmental
protections are taken and that Azerbaijan's environment will not suffer as it
did during Soviet-era oil programs," she said.
The Azerbaijan Society of America is a non-profit organization dedicated to enhancing knowledge about the Republic of Azerbaijan, the Azeri people, their culture and history.