Turkey seeks to defend crucial energy lines

Turkey, Georgia and Azerbaijan are increasing military cooperation in a bid to defend strategic energy supply lines surrounded by nearly 12,000 Russian troops based in three Moscow-influenced territories
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Russian military personnel  Army bases

ABKHAZIA 3,800 SOUTH OSSETIA 3,000 ARMENIA 5,000

GREATER CAUCASUS

RUSSIA

GEORGIA Akhalkalaki

Tbilisi

BLACK SEA

TURKEY

Kars

ARMENIA

AZERBAIJAN Baku

IRAN

CASPIAN SEA

Shah Deniz gas field

Russia considering stationing Iskander ballistic missiles in Armenia

Turkish, Georgian and Azerbaijani forces held series of military exercises in eastern Turkey in June

100km 60 miles
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Trans Anatolian Natural Gas Pipeline (TANAP): Will link to existing South Caucasus pipeline to bring Caspian gas into European market for first time and reduce dependence on Russian gas. Both are part of EU-backed Southern Gas Corridor

Launch: Mar 2015. Completion: 2019

Cost: $10bn. Length: 1,850km

Capacity: 16bn cubic metres a year

Baku-Tbilisi-Kars railway: Will connect region from Caspian Sea to eastern Turkey

Launch: Jul 2008

Completion: Late 2015

Length: 826km

Capacity: Will transport 1 million passengers and 6.5m tonnes of freight a year initially, expanding to 3m passengers and 15m tonnes of freight annually by 2030
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Sources: Stratfor, Caucasian Review of International Affairs

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