On December 10, the opening ceremony of the Serbia-Bulgaria Gas Interconnector was held in Nis, Serbia. President of the Republic of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev, President of the Republic of Serbia Aleksandar Vučić, and President of the Republic of Bulgaria Rumen Radev participated in the ceremony, the Press Office of the Azerbaijani President reported.

Aliyev commended Vucic's leadership in Serbia: "I simply want to say that our friendship with Aleksandar has greatly contributed to the development of Serbian-Azerbaijani relations. He is doing great things for his country. Under his leadership, Serbia successfully developed and pursued an independent policy that met the interests of the Serbian people and the state. As his friends, we are always happy with his successes, and we are expanding our bilateral agenda with tangible steps and concrete works. I know that President Vučić has large-scale plans for the development of the industrial potential of his country."

He also talked about the expansion of Azerbaijan's gas export map: "This is a project that can greatly contribute to the energy security of Serbia and Bulgaria. At the same time, I want to congratulate the people of Azerbaijan as Azerbaijan's gas export geography is expanding further. We currently export our natural gas to eight countries, and Serbia is the ninth country. Seven of these nine countries are European, and, of course, today's ceremony, the launch of the interconnector, will make an important contribution to European energy security. In 2021, our gas exports to Europe were slightly more than 8 billion cubic meters; this year, they will reach about 12 billion cubic meters. This accounts for 50 percent of Azerbaijan's total gas exports." Aliyev added: "I must also say, and I am sure that my friend Rumen can confirm these words, that our gas supplies to Bulgaria started two years ago. In 2021, 270 million cubic meters of gas were supplied. A little more than 500 million cubic meters were supplied last year. This number will be close to 1 billion cubic meters this year."

Talking in the ceremony, Rumen Radev said, "Today we are redrawing the energy map of Europe. Because the interconnector guarantees diversification and security not only for our countries but also for the entire region. It is no coincidence that the European Commission evaluated this project as a project of mutual interest. The war in Ukraine has prompted us to reconsider our understanding of good neighborliness, mutual assistance, and solidarity. We must not only find new resources, new ways, and new efficient solutions in logistics and energy fields but also create a more intensive and stronger international map. Realizing the importance of this geographical position, the active energy policy will benefit not only these countries but also all neighbors and countries located further away from the region."

Talking about existing capabilities, the Bulgarian leader noted: "This year, Bulgaria finalized the agreement and gained access to LNG terminals in Greece and Türkiye. We also have agreements to conduct transit operations through their networks. In March, we inaugurated the energy terminal in Alexandroupolis. Bulgaria has a 20 percent stake in that project. In April, we inaugurated the Solidarity Ring project, which is strategically vital for Europe. By doing this, we are gaining the opportunity to connect our networks to achieve the fastest and cheapest gas transportation from Azerbaijan to Central and Eastern Europe. Thanks to our active policy, we are holding the opening ceremony of the interconnector in Serbia today. Not only Serbia but also other countries of the region have access to gas from Azerbaijan, as well as seven terminals, an LNG terminal in the Mediterranean Sea, and, of course, the Solidarity Ring initiative and the Chiren storage facility in Bulgaria. We are currently expanding the infrastructure in Bulgaria, which will also give us access to Western European gas resources."