By Joshua Kucera
Despite some signs of progress, the littoral states remain apart on key issues.
Presidents of the five countries surrounding the Caspian Sea held a summit last week in Astrakhan, on the Russian shore of the sea. And while the Russian hosts declared that the summit moved the Caspian countries closer than ever to a final resolution of the stickiest issue – formalizing the sea’s international boundaries – strong differences of opinion linger not far under the surface.
Since the collapse of the Soviet Union, the question of who controls which parts of the Caspian has been in dispute. The disagreements have resulted in uncertainty over the sea’s substantial oil and natural gas reserves, and has helped to fuel a naval arms race on the sea.
After the summit, Russian President Vladimir Putin announced that “we have every reason to expect that we will soon have the convention ready for signing and will thus successfully conclude the work that has been going on for 18 years now.” A Russian presidential aide said that the long-debated agreement could be signed next year.
Read the full story at The Diplomat