Turkish, Russian leaders attend gas pipeline completion ceremony

ISTANBUL, Nov 19 (KUNA) -- Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin attended Monday a ceremony marking the completion of the offshore section of the TurkStream gas pipeline project.
Speaking at the ceremony, Erdogan said that TurkStream natural gas project is beneficial to Turkey, its neighboring countries and the entire region.
TurkStream natural gas pipeline project will be ready to operate in 2019 after tests are carried out, Erdogan added.
The Turkish leader commended Russia as a "reliable partner for Turkey" and an "important" natural gas provider that Turkey can cooperate with in the long run.
He added that Turkey has purchased 387 billion cubic meters of natural gas from Russia since 1987.
On his part, Russian President Vladimir Putin said the completion of TurkStream project has proved the effectiveness of cooperation with Turkey in resolving the most complicated issues.
He added that his country wanted to reach USD 100 billion bilateral trade volume with Turkey.
TurkStream gas pipeline is expected to carry 15.75 billion cubic meters (bcm) of natural gas to Turkey. (end) ta.mt