Moscow did make a statement regarding Iran and I can't reference it. I will look. Meanwhile Saakashvili is courting Tehran. Iran is setting itself up as a hub much to Bush’s chagrin and has a lot of pipeline proposals in the works.
Saakashvili realizing that Putin has Georgia’s energy sources under Moscow's control has gone to Iran thinking that Iran could be Georgia's very important economic partner in commerce, energy and transport sectors.
Saakashvivi has probably also guessed that the U.S. backed Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan pipeline will not be as lucrative for Georgia as planned.
A fierce struggle is unfolding for oil and gas exports from Kazakhstan, a land-locked Central Asian nation, which sits on the second biggest hydrocarbon reserves among the former Soviet states. Despite U.S. pressure, Kazakhstan may not give enough oil to the Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan pipeline to make it commercially viable, as BTC transit tariffs are going to be twice as high as Russia's. Earlier this year, Kazakhstan's President, Nursultan Nazarbayev, said that he regarded Russia as a "priority transit route for Kazakh oil," while Russia has offered to expand its pipeline capacity to take the bulk of Kazakh oil exports.
Tbilisi-Tehran relations receive a boost President visits ethnic Georgians, touts economic ties with Iran
Friday, July 9, 2004, #127 (0651)
By Sopho Gorgodze
Although events in Georgia appeared on the brink of serious conflict, President Mikheil Saakashvili nonetheless made the most of his state visit to Iran, hailing economic, cultural and political cooperation between the two not-so-distant neighbors.
With the invitation of Iranian President Mohammad Khatami, Saakashvili left for Tehran Tuesday evening accompanied by a high level delegation including the Minister of Energy Nika Gilauri, Minister of Education Kakha Lomaia and the Minister of Foreign Affairs Salome Zurabishvili.
As a sign of economic ties, the president also took a group of businessman and the Poti Port Head Jemal Inaishvili in his entourage.
On Wednesday Saakashvili was welcomed by the Iranian president in a special ceremony where the Georgian president also paid his respects at the grave of Ayatollah Khomeini who orchestrated the Islamic Revolution of 1979 in Iran.
According to the scant reports coming from Tehran, the two presidents discussed closer economic and trade relations and laid an emphasis on cultural and historical ties. The members of the delegation discussed the cooperation in the energy sphere, education, and infrastructure with their colleagues.
At a joint press conference, President Khatami appreciated great efforts made to promote Tehran-Tbilisi cooperation but labeled it still "insufficient" compared to what he wants, Payvand's Iran News reported.
Mikheil Saakashvili emphasized that Tehran is one of Georgia's major economic partners and described Iran as important and influential country in the region. He said Georgia should regain the losses incurred to it by not cooperating with Iran.
"We understand how important it is for the well being of the Georgian people to utilize the potential gain of Iran-Georgia relations, therefore we plan to reimburse the losses of the last few years with energetic and swift steps," Saakashvili said on Wednesday.
Regarding Iran's détente policy, "President Khatami emphasized that the Islamic Republic is moving in line with the promotion of global peace and stability," according to Tehran Times.
During his visit President Saakashvili stressed that Georgian foreign policy priority - i.e., entering the European Union - will not hinder the development of Georgian-Iran cooperation. Saakashvili thinks that Iran could be Georgia's very important economic partner in commerce, energy and transport sectors.
On his part Iranian President said: "We respect the democratic aspiration of Georgian president, support your aspirations towards restoring the country's territorial integrity, because we believe stability and security of Caucasus region is very important… we will also welcome enhancing economic relations with Georgia."
Georgia's Minister of Energy reportedly discussed with his counterpart the possibility of introducing alternative natural gas and electricity resources from Iran. Minister Nika Gilauri mentioned it is not beyond the realm of possibility that from the January 2005 Georgia could receive high quality Iranian natural gas transited trough Azerbaijan.
"Rehabilitation works are needed to implement the gas import and create additional gas reserves for Georgia so that we are not dependent on a single country. Apart from this it will be possible to talk about electricity exchange," Gilauri told Georgian reporters.
Poti Port head Jemal Inaishvili touted cooperation in the field of transport: "Iran is interested in our transportation opportunities which means infrastructure and ports, as it is one of the profitable ways for them to go to the European market."
On Thursday, President Saakashvili met with Iranian Foreign Minister Kamal Kharrazi. According to Prime News, Kharrazi pointed out that Iran has a positive experience resolving crises in Central Asia and Afghanistan and will play a constructive role in establishment of regional peace and stability and in fight against drug smuggling.
Later in the day, president traveled to the province of Fereidan to meet ethnic Georgians who had been living there for centuries. After invading Kakheti and Kartli in 1616 Shah Abbas I resettled more than one-hundred-thousand Georgians in the province of Iran - Fereidan.
Although converted to Islam, the Georgian descendents have retained much of the language and Georgian traditions. When Saakashvili arrived in the central town, men began chanting, "gaumarjos, gaumarjos, gaumarjos."
During the brief visit, the delegation distributed Georgian language books to residents. It also became a very emotional meeting for the president.
"I dreamed about coming here and I used to come here in my dreams," Saakashvili told the crowd.
He also thanked the Iranian government for creating good conditions for Georgians living in Fereidan. Despite contradicting reports, it appeared late Thursday evening that the president had decided not to cut his visit short in order to deal with the brewing situation in South Ossetia and was slated to return to Tbilisi on Friday.
Moscow will possibly assist Iran covertly. Russia is helping Iran basically to defend themselves. I can’t find where Russia has said for certain it would aid Iran although this, like their plans, they probably would leave unspoken.
The bigger problem again might be China. China is sending nuclear technology to Iran in exchange for oil. Russia is a producing country sharing a cooperative/competitive arrangement with Iran. China does not produce enough to warrant not securing oil through other large producers. China is not only assisting Iran as is Russia, China is also in the position of requiring Iran’s oil, therefore they are the ones that might readily defend Iran against the Kurds, Israel, etc., as Iran is more an investment to them.
U.S. nuclear inquiry finds China-Iran link Reuters Reuters Tuesday, June 15, 2004
WASHINGTON China is sending nuclear technology to Iran in exchange for oil and allowing North Korea to use Chinese air, rail and seaports to ship missiles and other weapons, congressional investigators reported Tuesday.
Although the Bush administration has emphasized a growing convergence with Beijing on halting the spread of weapons of mass destruction and countering terrorism, the U.S.-China Economic and Security Review Commission took a much harder line.
"China's continued failure to adequately curb its proliferation practices poses significant national security concerns to the United States," the commission said in its annual report.
It also raised the possibility that the Bush administration was using "inducements," such as not being tough enough with Beijing on trade infractions, to reward China for its cooperation on the North Korea nuclear crisis.
The commission, established by Congress in 2000, tends to be skeptical of Beijing.
"China's assistance to weapons of mass destruction-related programs in countries of concern continues, despite repeated promises to end such activities and the repeated imposition of U.S. sanctions," the commission said.
This "calls into question the effectiveness" of Washington's partnership with Beijing, the panel said.
Unlike the 1990s, it said, "Chinese transfers have evolved from sales of complete missile systems to exports of largely dual-use nuclear, chemical, and missile components and technologies; qualitatively, these transfers are equally worrisome."
Dual-use refers to items that could be used for either weapons-related or peaceful pursuits.
"Continuing intelligence reports indicate that Chinese cooperation with Pakistan and Iran remains an integral element of China's foreign policy," the commission reported.
It said cooperation on North Korea was a "critical test" of U.S.-China relations, but that Beijing was not using its substantial leverage to force Pyongyang to end its nuclear programs.
While making much of acting as host of six-country talks aimed at resolving the nuclear crisis, Beijing "continues to permit North Korea to use its air, rail and seaports to transship ballistic missiles and WMD-related materials," the commission said. American officials, in recent public testimony and interviews, underscored continuing differences between China and the United States over proliferation.
Chinese leaders have told the Americans that any nuclear-related trafficking is done without the government's knowledge.
The State Department recently sanctioned five Chinese companies for trading with Iran, but the commission criticized this focus. The commission said that many Chinese companies have direct ties to top-level government and military officials.
The commission said China's growing energy needs were "driving it into bilateral arrangements" that may involve "dangerous weapons transfers." Iran is a key oil-producing country.
"This need for energy security may help explain Beijing's history of assistance to terrorist-sponsoring states, with various forms of WMD-related items and technical assistance, even in the face of U.S. sanctions," the commission said.
Turning to Taiwan, the study said that the United States would face an increasingly lethal Chinese army modernized by Washington's friends and allies if it had to defend Taiwan in a war with China.
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