Russia, Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan flexible in adoption of Convention on Caspian Sea

The largest contribution in signing the Convention to determine the status of the Caspian Sea, was made by Russia, Azerbaijan and Kazakhstan, candidate of historical sciences, senior lecturer of the Russian History Department of Astrakhan State University, the head of the Center for International and Social and Political Studies "Caspian-Eurasia" Andrey Syzranov told Trend.

"Although all the Caspian countries without exception have done more or less for the solution of the most important Caspian issue, the three countries stand out showing the greatest flexibility," the expert said.

"Adoption of the Convention on the Legal Status of the Caspian Sea in Aktau will form the foundation for further development of all countries of the region, create many prospects for cooperation between the regional states in various fields , including military security, ecology, energy, transport and tourism. It is clear that the Convention will not solve all the problems between the Caspian countries. This is a matter for the future. Particularly, in the format of new bilateral and trilateral meetings, the issue of division of the Caspian Sea bed between Azerbaijan, Turkmenistan and Iran will be discussed," Syzranov added.

"For the Caspian states, in particular for Russia, Azerbaijan, and Kazakhstan, the Caspian region is not only important for political interaction and joint use of rich resources, but also for the creation of a sustainable social and economic development zone," he said.

The Convention on the Legal Status of the Caspian Sea was signed by President of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev, President of Kazakhstan Nursultan Nazarbayev, President of Russia Vladimir Putin, President of Iran Hassan Rouhani and President of Turkmenistan Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedov.

In addition, heads of the respective structures of the Caspian littoral states signed other important documents stemming from this Convention - the Protocol on Cooperation in the Fight against Organized Crime in the Caspian Sea, the Agreement on Trade and Economic Cooperation among the Governments of the Caspian Littoral States, the Agreement on Cooperation in the Transport Sphere among the Governments of the Caspian Littoral States, the Agreement on the Prevention of Incidents in the Caspian Sea and the Protocol on Cooperation and Interaction of Border Agencies.

Source: TREND