Baku 21° C
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After completing the final stage of expansion in 2004-2005, we decided that we should invest more in the security of our eastern partners in the name of stability and development of our common region, Chief of the Regional Programs Department at the European Commission's Directorate-General for Neighborhood and Enlargement Negotiations Vasilis Maragos said. Report informs that Maragos spoke at structural consultations in Baku on the future of the program.
He also noted that the European Union plans to allocate about 2 billion euros for the development and expansion of the railway network in five countries of the Eastern Partnership - Azerbaijan, Georgia, Ukraine, Moldova and Belarus. Such plans are part of the eastward expansion of the Trans-European Transport Network (TEN-T).
"We consider the program and project funding in Azerbaijan as investments in the future. In general, we were able to achieve a lot. We must not forget that this process is being carried out jointly. The EU achieved creation of more than 3,000 jobs in the Azerbaijani private sector. The EU is Azerbaijan’s largest trade and investment partner. These are issues of our common economic interests, " he said.
He also stressed that bilateral agreements were signed with each member country of the Eastern Partnership program. Some progress has been made with Azerbaijan on the issue of visa liberalization: "We also agreed with Azerbaijan on partnership priorities. Now we are developing a more in-depth document, 'Partnership Agreement' which will finally determine the format of our cooperation."
Vassilis Maragos also noted that the Erasmus program, which gives the opportunity for Azerbaijani youth to receive European education, played an important role in the Azerbaijan-EU cooperation. In his opinion, it is extremely important to invest in youth.
In addition, Malagos recalled that the new priorities for EaP will be discussed in Brussels in the first half of 2020.
