World Agencies on Energy Summit in Zagreb

All news agencies around the world reported about the Zagreb summit, stressing the role of Russia.

All leading world news agencies on Sunday reported about the one-day energy summit that took place in Zagreb Sunday, especially emphasising the participation of the Russian President Vladimir Putin in the light of the increasing significance of the South-East of Europe in the transit of Russian fuels towards Europe.

Croatia, the host of the conference, and its Balkan neighbours are located on an increasingly important transit route of oil and gas, Reuters writes in its report, relaying the statement of Croatian President Stjepan Mesic that all countries must agree that nobody’s energy interests would not be realised by force and that the availability of energy sources would not be used as a means of political pressure.

As the battle for control over European energy markets and transport routes is moving to the Balkans, the Russian president pledged in Zagreb to develop the Black Sea area as a centre for the distribution of fuels, Reuters writes. At the summit Putin announced that Russia wants to play a crucial role in all forms of supply and production of energy in the region, stressing the close cultural and historical ties with the countries of the region, Reuters reports.

The conference was held at a time when the importance of the Balkans is growing as a transit centre for energy and the European Union wants to modernise the transit system in the region to use it as a route of delivery of natural gas from central Asia to western Europe, the agency writes.

But, in order to prevent such a move because Europe would then get an alternative to Russia’s natural gas and probably decrease Moscow’s political and economic influence, Putin said that Russia was prepared to develop a transit centre of fueld in the Black Sea area, Reuters says.

Reuters also relayed the statement of Bulgarian President Gregori Parvanov that the development of energy policy of the region should be harmonised with the energy strategy of the European Union.

The Associated Press agency stressed Putin’s promise to help the Balkan region to satisfy its energy needs and realise a larger role in the safe supply of Europe with gas and oil.

Putin emphasised ongoing projects and studies through which the EU is connected with energy sources in the Black and Caspian seas through Bulgaria, Serbia, Macedonia and Hungary, as well as a recent agreement on an underwater pipeline of the Italian gas giant Eni and Russia’s Gazprom, the agency states.

Russia is dedicated to participating in joint energy projects and the realisation of the highest standards of environment protection, Putin said, adding that Moscow was open for dialogue, but is also prepared to protect its national interests, Associated Press reports.

The Slovene agency STA said the Zagreb summit opened numerous issues among which most attention was paid to the secure and dependable supply of fuels in the future, in which Russia primarily sees its role and long-term interest.

Countries that participated in the summit, including Slovenia, agreed with the assessment of Croatian President Stjepan Mesic that the energy market should be free and open and that fuels should be available to everybody on equal conditions and that countries of South-East Europe could not be excluded from this process, the STA reports.

The STA relayed the statement by Slovene Development Minister Ziga Turk that “the Zagreb meeting timely showed political will for the achievement of fundamental frameworks for global energy security”, adding that Turk had announced that energy security would be one of the key priorities of Slovenia’s presidency over the EU.

The Slovene agency wrote that Turk had announced that Slovenia was ready for a bigger role in the energy community through the organisation of an international forum on gas and the creation of a regional fuels market that would function under stock market principles.

The STA also relayed a warning from the president of Serbia, Boris Tadic, that “the possible independence of Kosovo would create a dangerous precedent that would destabilise not only Serbia, but the entire region of the Balkans and numerous other regions”, and could lead to an energy crisis such as the one in the 1970’s.

Putin’s arrival in Zagreb was covered by heightened security measures and the time of the landing of his plane was kept secret until the last moment, Germany’s DPA agency wrote. In its report it mentioned the Kosovo issue and Putin’s announced meeting with the Serbian president and Albanian President Alfred Moisiu.