According to experts, the Caspian Sea littoral states’ have approved the legal status of the sea by up to 80 percent and to approve the other 20 percent remains the most difficult. The commercial interests of these Caspian countries prevent the solution of problems. However, interest in the stability and security of the region should prompt these countries to find acceptable compromises and formalize them in a Convention on the legal status of the Caspian Sea.
The working group on the Caspian Sea Convention is holding its 26th meeting in Ashkhabad with the representatives from all the littoral countries – Russia, Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, Iran and Turkmenistan, taking part.
The need for the determining of the legal status of the Caspian Sea appeared after the collapse of the Soviet Union when the number of littoral states increased to five from two and the agreements between the former Soviet Union and Iran became invalid. Many issues, especially those concerning ecology and bio-resources have been resolved since the start of negotiations. However, the legal status has not been determined yet, and this has hampered the implementation of several oil and gas projects, says an expert at the CIS Institute, Andrei Grozin.
Russia and Azerbaijan are in agreement but Iran and Turkmenistan are sharply divided, and there are disputes between Iran and Azerbaijan, and between Azerbaijan and Turkmenistan, says Andrei Grozin. These disputes are based on who is going to control oil and gas deposits on the Caspian shelf. Clearly, when the issue is examined from a material angle this will hardly help to reach a consensus, Andrei Grozin said.
Foreign interference is another factor that hinders an agreement, says the deputy director of the Strategic Culture Foundation, Andrei Areshev.
Another obstacle is the escalating struggle for energy resources involving the littoral states and the US and the European Union, the large consumers of oil and gas. Although the need for defining the legal status of the Caspian Sea appeared following the collapse of the Soviet Union, the issue should be resolved only by the countries themselves without the interference of third parties Russia insists. In fact, this is stipulated in several documents, including the Teheran Declaration adopted two years ago, Andrei Areshev said.
Unfortunately, each country has started struggling alone for oil and gas in the Caspian Sea and several countries try to attract more powerful foreign players to their side. In these circumstances it is impossible to talk about achieving mandatory agreements concerning the sharing of the Caspian Sea in the near future although they could help to ease tension in the region, especially if they were accompanied by demilitarization.
Natalya Kovalenko
Please rate: