On Monday 15 May 2024, Dr Marat Terterov, Principal Representative of the Brussels Energy Club (BREC), contributed to a roundtable discussion on ‘EU Global Gateway – Achieving Full Potential of the trans-Caspian Transport Corridor’ in Brussels. This high-level, invitation-only event was organised jointly by TUSIAD and UND (International Transporters Association) and was attended by multiple Ambassadors and senior EU officials. The discussion took place under the Chatham House format – off the record. The format of the roundtable included interventions from all participants.
Dr Terterov stressed the following in his remarks:
• External actors should focus more on business and economic cooperation in the region and be less engaged as geopolitical actors
• The countries along the corridor are no longer the countries they were in the 1990s, following the collapse of the Soviet Union. They should no longer be dealt with as junior partners.
• The countries along the corridor are in their own way ‘booming’: Our focus should be on further aiding them in their efforts to develop economically
• At the same time, we should encourage them to be more sustainable in their development tracks, more efficient in the use of energy, and more ambitious in addressing national climate targets
• The EU should ‘cut the red tape’ when developing its strategy for the Corridor countries and listen closer to ‘voices from the region’
• Development in the region will not result purely from the EU’s promotion of large-scale mega-slogan initiatives. Support for specific projects emanating in the region is more relevant.
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