Ukrainian FM urges greater energy co-opn among GUAM members

Ukrainian Foreign Minister Konstantin Grishchenko on Monday called for greater energy cooperation within a regional bloc that groups Georgia, Azerbaijan, Moldova and his country.

The minister made the remarks during a trip to Azerbaijan, according to news reports reaching here from Baku.

Grishchenko said he and his Azerbaijani counterpart Elmar Mamedyarov held extensive talks on the future of the bloc, known as the Organization for Democracy and Economic Development, or GUAM.

The two sides agreed that the organization is over-politicized, and it should shift its priority to energy cooperation and transport, he said.

Grishchenko said that once organizational consolidation is completed, GUAM will work more effectively on such projects as transporting Caspian oil and gas to Europe.

Established in October, 1997, the name of GUAM was coined by combining the initials of its four members. GUAM leaders decided at a 2006 summit to transform the bloc from an informal regional alliance into a formal international organization.

Source: Xinhua