EU sees Azerbaijan as reliable energy partner: Tusk

Azerbaijan is a reliable and strategic partner of the European Union (EU) in the energy field, and the EU wants to take this partnership further, European Council President Donald Tusk said here Wednesday.

"The EU is dedicated to diversifying its (gas) supplies. And Azerbaijan is a main partner in this endeavor," Tusk said at a joint press conference with Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev.

"Today, we agreed to stand united on developing the Southern Gas Corridor -- a project which is in our common strategic interest -- and to make sure it is completed on time," said Tusk.

The Southern Gas Corridor is a project to bring gas from Azerbaijan via Georgia, Turkey and the Balkan states to the EU.

"For Europe, it is a question of diversifying supply. For Azerbaijan, it is a question of diversifying demand," Tusk said.

Energy-rich Azerbaijan is one of the EU's six Eastern Partnership countries. The EU sees the country as an alternative to Russia in supplying oil and gas to Europe.

Also, Tusk said that Azerbaijan has the potential to become one of the EU's major commercial partners in the region. The EU, he said, is already Azerbaijan's main trade partner and one of its most important investors.

"We are about to implement bilateral agreements. The strategic cooperation agreement plays an important role in this regard," he said.

On Azerbaijan-EU visa regime negotiations, Tusk said the EU wants Azerbaijan to enter the Schengen area.

He said the issue of facilitating the visa regime has already been discussed with the Azerbaijani president, and hopes are high that negotiations in this regard will be completed by the end of this year.

"We want Azerbaijan to enter the Schengen area and make it easier for people to travel from one country to another," he added.

Tusk arrived for an official visit to Azerbaijan on Tuesday. Endi