Azerbaijan says it has exported about 230 million francs worth of crude oil to Switzerland this year. Regarding the conflict in Nagorno-Karabakh, Azerbaijan’s ambassador to Switzerland says that legal proceedings are being prepared against Armenia and calls for progress in the negotiations.
“We are very happy to work with our Swiss partners,” Fuad Isgandarov told reporters in Geneva on Wednesday. According to him, at the beginning of the year, Switzerland was not yet receiving any crude oil from his country, while now the exports have reached a total of 230 million dollars.
The ambassador also states that 70% of crude oil reservoirs on Swiss territory, as well as in other countries, are made up of Azerbaijani hydrocarbons arriving via Italy. As for natural gas, the corridor that starts in this country has been supplying more European countries since the beginning of the offensive in Ukraine.
A few months ago, Azerbaijan and the EU planned to double the volume by 2025. According to the ambassador, Switzerland should also benefit from this supply. On the political front, Isgandarov says he is “proud” that talks on Nagorno-Karabakh between his country’s and Armenia’s foreign ministers, through US mediation in particular, had taken place in Geneva, and thanks Switzerland.
Efforts with Bern for security
Armenia, allied with Russia, and Azerbaijan, supported by Turkey, have fought two wars for the control of the Armenian-majority Azerbaijani enclave. More than 6,000 people were killed in the second conflict in 2020, and hundreds were also killed in recent clashes. “There are so many issues, we need to advance the talks,” Isgandarov insists.
He says he is “very optimistic” after the discussions that have “never been as intense” as those of a few weeks ago, but rejects any occupation of Armenian territory by his country. However, Mr. Isgandarov also claims that legal proceedings are being prepared against Armenia to demand compensation for what he calls the occupation of Azerbaijani territory. Some cities “have been completely destroyed”, he adds.
Another problem is that several Azerbaijani diplomatic missions in different countries have been targeted in recent years. The ambassador says he is working with the authorities to ensure the safety of his staff in Switzerland.
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