Caspian Sea issues discussed at interdepartmental level in Turkmenistan

Ashgabat hosted a meeting of the interdepartmental commission of Turkmenistan on the Caspian Sea, which defined near-term tasks, “Turkmen Dovlet Khabarlary” state news service reported on Monday.
According to the report, the program was approved in 2013 given chairmanship of Turkmenistan in the Coordinating Committee on Hydrometeorology and Pollution Monitoring of the Caspian Sea (CASPCOM).
The events planned for the near future include an international training course “Caspian Sea – Sustainable Development and Management” in environmental structures, relevant ministries and departments of Turkmenistan.
“A full and comprehensive realization of the multifaceted potential of the Caspian Sea and its coast is of strategic importance for the economies of neighboring countries, including Turkmenistan,” the report says.
The committee’s members stressed the need for further development of the legal framework regulating the various activities in the Caspian Sea.
“It was noted that Turkmenistan, as a consistent supporter of peace, harmony and stability in the Caspian basin, stands for a constructive dialogue based on national interests of all parties and the making of common efforts to implementation of promising projects and comprehensive approach to addressing challenges faced by neighboring countries on the entire spectrum of the Caspian Sea problems,” the report says.
Ashgabat hosted international forums on various aspects of the Caspian problems last year.
The meeting of Special Working Group on the development of a draft convention on the legal status of the Caspian Sea at the level of deputy foreign ministers of the Caspian states was one of the events. Regional meetings were also held to discuss the draft agreement on the conservation and sustainable use of biological resources of the Caspian Sea.
These meetings were attended by heads and senior specialists of relevant ministries and departments – fisheries, nature management and environmental protection, other state agencies of Azerbaijan, Iran, Kazakhstan, Russia and Turkmenistan.
The littoral states (Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, Russia, Turkmenistan and Iran) signed the Framework Convention for the Protection of the Marine Environment of the Caspian Sea in November 2003.
In July 1998, Russia and Kazakhstan signed an agreement on the delimitation of the northern part of the Caspian Sea in order to exercise sovereign rights for subsoil use.
On Nov. 29, 2001 and Feb. 27, 2003, Kazakhstan and Azerbaijan signed an agreement on the delimitation of the Caspian Sea. Kazakhstan, Azerbaijan and Russia signed an agreement on the delimitation of adjacent sections of the Caspian Sea on May 14, 2003.