"Turkey wants to become a transit corridor for Europe and intends to establish an energy corridor together with Russia for energy supplies to Europe. We look positively on the Turkish Stream, which is being developed by Russia. Through this pipeline gas will flow to the Balkans right across the Black Sea," Erdogan said at the World Energy Congress in Istanbul.
The Turkish leader recalled that the sides had already implemented the Blue Stream project, a trans-Black Sea gas pipeline to transport gas from Russia into Turkey.
"We are currently working on the TANAP [Trans-Anatolian Natural Gas Pipeline], which in the future will connect with the Trans-Adriatic Pipeline and will become a new corridor to deliver gas to Europe," Erdogan added.
In November 2015, the Turkish Stream project was suspended after a Russian Su-24 aircraft was downed by a Turkish F-16 fighter in Syria. In June, following Turkey's apology to Russia for the November incident, the sides began a reconciliation process.
In late September, Russia's Gazprom energy company said it had received a majority of permits from Ankara on the construction of the pipeline. Earlier on Monday, Russian President Vladimir Putin said that he had discussed the development of the Turkish Stream pipeline project with Erdogan.
