Caspian Sea legal status discussed in Baku

    The 44^th meeting of the Ad Hoc Working Group for the Elaboration of the Caspian Sea Legal Status Convention kicked off yesteray in Baku at the level of the deputy foreign ministers of the Caspian States, a Kazinform correspondent reports.
    According to Deputy FM of Azerbaijan Halaf Halafov, the meetings at the level of the heads of state and foreign ministers of the Caspian-littoral countries have provided a favorable opportunity for a consolidation of efforts toward a rapprochement of positions.
    He expressed confidence that all ssues related to the legal status of the Caspian Sea must be settled in a spirit of respect to the sovereignty and rights of the Caspian States as well as through strengthening trust among participating parties.
    Halafov noted that Baku is set to host the 6^th Conference of the Parties to the Framework Convention for the Protection of the Marine Environment of the Caspian Sea.
    “Azerbaijani has prepared a draft agreement on the placement of the Secretariat in Baku and presented this draft document to the Caspian States,” he added.
    Special Envoy of the Russian President for the Delimitation and Demarcation of the Russian Borders with the CIS Countries, Igor Bradchikov, Deputy Foreign Minister of Iran Ibrahim Rahimpour, Ambassador-at-Large of Kazakhstan Zulfiya Amanzholova and Chairman of the Turkmen Presidential State Enterprise for Caspian Sea Issues Murad Atajanov attended the meeting, Kazinform reports.