The final pieces in an oil pipeline linking Baku, Tbilisi and the Turkish port of Ceyhan were fitted Saturday with the presidents of both Azerbaijan and Georgia attending a border ceremony to mark the occasion. Speaking at the ceremony, Georgian president Mikhail Saakashvili underlined the importance of the pipeline for the economies of both countries, while his Azerbaijani counterpart Ilcham Aliyev said the project was proof of the trust between the two Caucasus nations. The 2.8-billion-dollar pipeline is set to begin operating in 2005 and will pump up to 50 million tons of oil per year.
