01-02-04 The Gulf countries are being urged to forge new security alliances with those in the South Caucasus region to promote joint political stability and consolidate their control over the global oil market.
A paper issued by the Bahrain Centre for Studies and Research (BCSR) says both regions would benefit from closer ties, especially in the light of US-led invasion of Iraq. Such an agreement would put Bahrain in league with countries such as Afghanistan, Tajikistan, Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, Turkmenistan, Armenia and Georgia.

"The suggestion is that countries in the Gulf and South Caucasus form a joint economic body, which will help the collective security of these two strategic areas," said BCSR researcher and author of the paper, Yousif Albinkhalil.
"The South Caucasus is very important because it has a lot of natural resources such as gas and oil, which are second only to the Arabian Gulf. Bahrain has diplomatic relations with these countries, but it is not at a very high level. Over time, this should increase."

Mr Albinkhalil presented the paper, “Security of South Caucasus and the Gulf”, at an international conference in Tehran, Iran. The 11th International Conference on Central Asia and the Caucasus focused on security developments in the region.
Both the South Caucasus and the Gulf are said to have similar histories having been shaped by conflict, ethnic diversity, border disputes and the influence of the US, while they are both located close to large expanses of water. There is also a strong Islamic heritage in the South Caucasus region.
However, Mr Albinkhalil says it is the massive oil reserves which could be the uniting factor -- saying both regions account for 68 % of proven global reserves.

A suggestion put forward in his paper is to extend oil pipelines from South Caucasus and Caspian Sea into the Gulf, through Iran. This would get around problems of supplying South Caucasus oil to the global market due to the lack of sea and land outlets.
"The Omani efforts in thisregard are perhaps an indication of the possibility of the Gulf states undertaking this task," says the paper. "Oman has contributed to the financing of the first major pipeline linking the largest oil field in Kazakhstan to the Russian ports on the Black Sea and has acquired a 50 % stake in this investment."

Any alliance between the Gulf and South Caucasus nations is expected to open up a number of trade opportunities between the two regions. Mr Albinkhalil expects it to boost commercial activity through trade exchange visits and the encouragement of mutual investments, which could energise national economies and diversify revenue sources in both regions.
"In the light of economic blocks and security alliances being witnessed by the world today, it is imperative to set up a security-economic organisation between the two regions," he concludes.