One of the most pressing environmental problems in the region – the shallowing of the Caspian Sea – will be the focus of the work of a new joint group. The agreement to establish it was reached at the 11th meeting of the High-Level Working Group (HLWG) of the Caspian states, which concluded today in Turkmenistan.
As a result of the three-day negotiations, it was also decided that the right to host the next, 12th, HLWG meeting will be transferred to Azerbaijan. Thus, the next meeting of the “five” will be held in Baku.
The meeting, held on September 15-17, was attended by delegations from Azerbaijan, Iran, Kazakhstan, Russia and Turkmenistan. In addition to the environmental agenda, the parties continued to discuss the methodology for establishing baselines, which is a key element for the further determination of maritime boundaries.
Diplomats also reviewed the current five-party cooperation and discussed preparations for future events at various levels. The exact dates of the Baku meeting will be agreed upon through diplomatic channels.