Executive Director of the London Information Network on Conflicts and State-building (Links) Dennis Sammut said the European Union should increase pressure on Armenia to withdraw its troops from Azerbaijani territory.
Sammut spoke to a fringe debate entitled 'Russia, Azerbaijan and the West: what does the New Great Game mean for Europe's energy security?' organized by the European Azerbaijan Society (TEAS), in association with Progress.
He renewed calls for a peaceful and just resolution to the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict. Sammut acknowledged that Azerbaijan remains a well-organized country, having derived sufficient profits from the energy sector to achieve progress.
He referred to last week's news that the EU was aiming to ratify an agreement with Azerbaijan and Turkmenistan to construct a new Trans-Caspian pipeline.
He concluded that the EU has a unique opportunity to take the relationship with Azerbaijan to the next level, and reported that Total had found enormous resources of gas in the Caspian Sea, necessitating further EU engagement with Azerbaijan. During a lively question-and-answer session, Sammut expressed his hope that a unified EU would speak with one voice during negotiations with Azerbaijan on the proposed Trans-Caspian pipeline.
The panel also comprised Wayne David MP, Shadow Minister for Europe; Richard Howitt MEP; and Charles Grant, Director, Centre for European Reform.
According to David, the UK remains the largest foreign investor in Azerbaijan, largely due to the BP investment of $23bn (£14.8bn) in the country since 1994. He revealed that the UK government had repeatedly acknowledged the importance of Azerbaijan to the UK economy. David went on to explain the Western European requirement for energy security, and expressed the hope that the Southern Energy Corridor, bringing Caspian resources to Western Europe, would receive UK support for its construction. David also stressed his backing for the OSCE Minsk Group, tasked with achieving peaceful resolution of the ongoing Armenian-Azerbaijani Nagorno-Karabakh conflict.

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