Houston hosts presentation by Joshua Kucera
Baku, February 15 (AZERTAC). Presentation of the American journalist Joshua Kucera titled ‘Pipelines & Gunboats: the Militarization of the Caspian Sea’ was held at the World Affairs Council of Houston.
The author focuses on Caspian energy projects, implemented after the collapse of the Soviet Union and potential new projects. Special attention was given to Azerbaijan, in particular, to the project "Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan" as well as economic and military growth of the Azerbaijan Republic.
The journalist specializing in Caucasian and Central Asian region said, Azerbaijan, in contrast to other post-Soviet countries in the region, pursues a successful policy, maintains good relations with all countries, thus remaining independent in the economic sphere and in the political arena. Kucera also stressed that the diversification of Azerbaijani energy export help many countries, including Israel and Europe.
“Twenty years after the fall of the Soviet Union created three new states on the Caspian’s shore, the boundaries in this oil and gas rich region are still contested and ill-defined. Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan and Turkmenistan are using their mineral income to dramatically build their navies. The two neighboring powers, Russia and Iran, are also strengthening their military presence and both are in opposition of the proposed Trans-Caspian Pipeline which is backed by the U.S. & Europe,” the presentation says.
Josh Kucera is a freelance journalist based in Washington, D.C. He is a regular contributor to EurasiaNet, Jane's and Slate. His articles have appeared in The Atlantic, The Wilson Quarterly, U.S. News and World Report, Time, ForeignPolicy.com, Monocle, The New Republic and The Nation. He blogs on Eurasian defense and security at ‘The Bug Pit’ on EurasiaNet.
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