Azerbaijan, Baku / corr Trend I.Khalilova / Plans to reform the Turkmen economy and democratization of society, announced by the President of Turkmenistan in the United States, will have a positive impact on Azerbaijani - Turkmen cooperation, Kamal Ismayilzade, the head of the interregional economic cooperation department at the Azerbaijani Cabinet of Ministers said.
"The program of reforms include the further transformation and modernization of the economy, improvement of national state institutes and public life, including the further democratization of society," President Gurbanguli Berdimuhamadov said. "Engineering and agriculture are priorities of the economic reforms," Berdimuhamadov said.
"Since Berdimuhamadov was elected president, mutual relations between two countries have been improving," Ismayilzade said.
According to Ismayilzade, definite statements by the Turkmen Government on delivery of Turkmen gas via Azerbaijan provide a good basis in this respect.
"The two countries are keen on settling debt obligations and holding an intergovernmental commission meeting," a senior official of the Cabinet of Ministries said.
The first meeting on settlement of debts dated to 1991 - 1992, was held in June. Discussions are still underway, because the exact volume of arrears will be made concrete during the gathering. The next intergovernmental commission meeting will probably be held by the end of 2007.
Turkmenistan insists on their calculations, which result in the amount being tripled. Baku states it owes $18mln for the purchase of Turkmen gas, whilst Turkmenistan insists it is $56mln with interest. Turkmenistan has not taken into consideration the import of Azerbaijani products in exchange of gas supplies at the beginning of the 1990s. They were lost during the transportation, but Azerbaijan does not have any responsibility for their loss.
