Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev has warned that Europe\u2019s green agenda is stifling necessary investment in fossil fuels, adding that Baku requires long-term supply contracts before committing to major production increases to help ease European energy shortages. <\/p>\n
Speaking on Azerbaijan’s energy strategy, Aliyev noted that European banks are increasingly unwilling to finance traditional energy projects due to their transition toward green energy, raising critical questions about how future capacity expansions will be funded, News.Az<\/a> reports.<\/p>\n “The issue here is Europe\u2019s green agenda,” Aliyev said. “European banks do not want to invest in fuel energy today. Therefore, the question arises: where should the financial resources for this come from?”<\/p>\n Aliyev stressed that securing long-term supply commitments is critical before Azerbaijan risks heavy capital expenditure to ramp up output. He confirmed he had raised the issue directly with European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen.<\/p>\n “We need long-term contracts. We need huge investments to sharply increase production,” Aliyev said. “If at some stage we are told, ‘Thank you, we no longer need your gas,’ that would be unacceptable.”<\/p>\n The Azerbaijani president also highlighted Baku’s ongoing efforts to diversify its export markets, noting that the country is now piping gas to non-traditional markets, including Syria, with the potential to expand further into neighboring countries where demand remains high.<\/p>\n Despite the friction over financing and long-term guarantees, Aliyev praised Baku\u2019s deepening diplomatic ties with Brussels, pointing to a flurry of high-level visits between March and July by the European Commission President, the European Council President, and the EU’s top diplomat.<\/p>\n “We are very pleased with this cooperation,” Aliyev said, characterizing the outcomes of the recent talks as highly successful and covering both bilateral energy ties and global geopolitical developments.<\/p>\n