CASPIAN SEA STATES REACHED AGREEMENT, ISOLATING IRAN
ASTANA (KAZAKHSTAN) 7 July (IPS) Turkmenistan's President Saparmurat Niyazov stabbed Friday his Iranian neighbours on the back when he announced that all the Caspian Sea litoral states except Iran had agreed to a single plan.
Speaking in Astana after the inauguration of the Turkmen Embassy in the Kazakhstan’s new Capital and before going back to his country, Mr. Niyazov said of the three existing projects to define the legal status of the Sea, one was picked up by Russia, Kazakhstan, Turkmenistan and Azerbaijan, with Iran clinching to another project.
Though he did not emphasised, yet he suggested dividing the Sea’s bed according to each littoral state’s shores and a 47 miles Economic Interest Zone for each, leaving the rest to the international navigation.
"This proposal is based on the United Nations and international measures and with the exception of Iran, are accepted by all other four states", the Turkmen President for life said.
As such a division will give Iran less than 13 per cent of the Sea’s resources, Tehran rejects the proposal, insisting that old agreements signed between the former Soviet Union and Iran must remain valid until a new formula was found to everyone’s satisfaction.
These agreements assure Iran 20 per cent of the Caspian Sea’s resources.
Analysts said the accord reached among the four dormer Soviet republics is a big blow to the position of Iran and would further isolate Tehran.
Iranian experts and reformists MMs (Members of the Majles) have recently blasted the Iranian Foreign ministry for its weak handling of the negotiations in this strategic region, said to contain some of the world’s largest oil and gas reserves.
They accused the Ministry for following Moscow "blindfold", neglecting other littoral States.
To help overcome differences, Mr. Niyazov said that he has invited to Ashgabat the Heads of state of the five Caspian littoral states on October 26 and 27 for a "more final definition of the status of the Caspian".
He had planned to host a summit of the five nations in the spring but it fell through as Iran sought a delay.
The landlocked Caspian contains vast oil and gas reserves which all the five littoral states, Russia, Iran and Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan and Turkmenistan want to develop.
While Tehran insist that the old agreements are in force and must be regarded as the basis for any new one, other coastal states, particularly Kazakhstan and Russia and Azerbaijan have already made arrangements between themselves.
Russian President Vladimir Putin has invited his three regional counterparts to the summer resort of Sochi, on the Black Sea, for early August next to discuss further the Sea’s status.
"Iran would be informed about the Sochi discussions", President Niyazov assured during a joint press conference with his Kazak counterpart Noor Sultan Nazarbayev.
"There's no disagreement between Kazakhstan and Turkmenistan on the Caspian, there's no disagreement between Turkmenistan and Russia", he said, adding that there were still issues to be resolved with Azerbaijan and Iran. ENDS CASPIAN SEA 7701