ALGIERS, Jan. 24 (Xinhua) -- Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov on Thursday highlighted the importance of coordination with Algeria in the field of energy, with regard to the natural gas market.
Speaking at a press conference with his Algerian counterpart Abdelkader Messahel in Algiers, Lavrov said Algeria and Russia need to coordinate their work and efforts in energy, including at the level of the Gas Exporting Countries Forum (GECF).
Algeria and Russia are top natural gas exporters, particularly for the European market as Algeria provides the European Union (EU) with 14 percent of its needs of natural gas.
Algeria currently produces 130 billion cubic meters of natural gas annually, 50 billion cubic meters of which are dedicated for export on a yearly basis.
Lavrov, who had started a two-day visit to Algeria on Wednesday, said the two countries have set the tangible means to embody the objectives contained in the joint declaration over strategic partnership.
The partnership agreement had been signed in Russia in April 2001 during a visit by Algerian President Abdelaziz Bouteflika to Moscow, he added.
The convening of the forthcoming session of the joint Algerian-Russian economic commission in Moscow on Jan. 28 will offer an opportunity to study the potentials available for both countries as means to boost bilateral economic ties, he said.
Lavrov also praised the current cooperation between the two countries in the political, economic and military fields.
He noted that an agreement was reached to enhance direct communications between the business communities in the two countries.
