At the joint press conference with his Greek counterpart in Athens the Secretary of State said that the launch of the interconnector Greece-Bulgaria would enable Sofia, previously dependent on Russian gas, to fully meet its domestic gas needs through deliveries from Azerbaijan.
“We’re both taking steps to help Southeast Europe countries reduce their dependence on Russian gas, diversify energy sources, and deepen integration into the continent’s broader energy market. That’s both an economic and a security imperative,” Antony Blinken said. “The United States welcomes the leadership role that Greece is playing, including through the newly constructed Interconnector Greece-Bulgaria, which is putting Bulgaria on a path to import nearly 100 percent of its domestic gas needs through Azerbaijan and through the United States.”
You may recall that the construction of the interconnector Greece-Bulgaria was delayed for many years by pro-Russian forces in Bulgaria. But last year, a coalition of pro-Western forces in the country decided to speed up the construction of the pipeline and stop using Russian gas. As a result, the interconnector Greece-Bulgaria was launched on October 1, 2022.
Speaking at the inauguration ceremony, President of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev called the project “historic” and said that IGB would play an important role in strengthening energy security of Europe and diversification of gas supplies.
“Energy security is part of national security of every country and the current geopolitical situation in the world proves it once again,” stressed the President of Azerbaijan. “The Southern Gas Corridor is one of the biggest infrastructure projects on the continent, which changed the energy map of Europe. Azerbaijan is proud to be the initiator of the Southern Gas Corridor.”
