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Zeyno Baran: the USA Wants NABUCCO to Go Round Russia

The USA have no economic interests in the Nabucco gas pipeline project, as well as there was no economic interest in the oil pipeline Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan. This was stated by Zeyno Baran, the Director of the Center for Eurasian Policy at the Hudson Institute. According to Zeyno Baran, who is also a wife of the US State Secretary Deputy Assistant Matthew Bryza, Washington has a pure political interest in these projects. “We should assure for the countries of Caucasus and Central Asia, through the territories of which Nabucco pipeline will be laid, have no fear to become dependent of Russia”, - she noted.

According to Zeyno Baran, the EU task is to support these counties. “Despite that Nabucco is not that significant for European states, this project is extremely important for the countries through the territories of which the pipeline will be laid. Nabucco project – is the answer on the question, where will gas stocks of Turkmenistan flow. Provided the project is accomplished, Europe will gain a new source of energy carriers; and if not, that Turkmen gas will flow to China, India and Russia. In this respect, it is very important for European states to reach unanimity within the Nabucco problem and not to be afraid of Russian influence”, - underlined Baran.
 

 

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Let us note, that Nabucco pipeline should lie through the territory of Turkey, Bulgaria, Romania, Hungary and Austria. It’s supposed that Europe will obtain gas from Azerbaijan, Central Asia and Iran round Russia via this pipeline. The European Union hopes that it will diversify gas supplies and reduce the dependence from the Russian Federation.

Construction works should start in 2009 and end by 2013.

The cost of the project is estimated as 5 billion Euro. Project anticipates piping along the bottom of Caspian Sea. In reply Russia developed the project of Pre-Caspian gas pipeline, that will lie along Northern Russia cost of Caspian Sea.
  
  

Translated from regnum.ru