Russian and Kazakh academics intend to offer a multilateral project to study the Caspian riches
Speaking at the Caspian summit in Aktau in August this year, President Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedov expressed confidence that all economic activity in the Caspian sea needs strict scientific reasoning. The head of state also put forward an initiative on the expediency of signing a five-party agreement on scientific research in the Caspian sea. It seems that the proposals of the Turkmen leader, met then with the support of the other Caspian neighbors, are now reflected in the agenda of the scientific community of the Caspian region. Thus, the Russian Academy of Sciences called for the establishment of five-sided cooperation in the study of natural resources of the Caspian sea. This issue was discussed recently at a meeting of the head of RAS Alexander Sergeyev with his Kazakh counterpart Murat Zhurinov. - The Caspian sea is an amazing sea that lives by laws different from the real seas that have access to the oceans. At the same time, there are many resources in the Caspian — mineral and biological. How can we make full use of this region, taking into account environmental and economic interests? We have an idea today that the academies of the two countries come out with an initiative to create a project in which all five countries with access to the Caspian sea would participate, - Alexander Sergeev said at a press conference in the multimedia press center of Sputnik Kazakhstan. According to Sergeyev, if the academies of both countries present this idea, they would receive the support of other Caspian countries. However, this topic requires further consultations at a higher level. In turn, Murat Zhurinov agreed with head of RAS and noted that the settlement of political problems in the Caspian sea “opens the way for joint research”. The resource significance of the Caspian reservoir is associated not only with the availability of billions of tons of oil and trillions of cubic meters of gas. Along with this, the Caspian sea is home for up to 90% of the world population of sturgeon and other valuable fish species. Moreover, in recent decades, the recreational potential of coasts in all five countries has significantly increased. In Turkmenistan, for example, the national tourist zone of Avaza is being actively developed, mineral and mud springs are being explored.
