Russia, Iran, others debate how to split Caspian oil riches

Regional leaders meet in Turkmenistan, with Iran’s VP insisting that threat of US sanctions undermines region’s stability

TURKMENBASHI, Turkmenistan (AP) — Five countries bordering the energy-rich Caspian Sea met Monday at an economic forum hosted by Turkmenistan in a bid to agree on how to divide the region’s oil wealth.

Last year, the leaders of Russia, Iran, Azerbaijan, Turkmenistan and Kazakhstan signed a convention aimed at ending decades-long uncertainty over exploitation of its resources.

The agreement establishes rules for declaring each country’s territorial waters and fishing zones, but the issue of dividing the seabed that contains rich oil and gas fields is subject to further negotiations.

Russia and Iran are yet to ratify last year’s agreement. Russia’s Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev, who attended Monday’s forum in Turkmenistan, said that the ratification is expected “in the near future.”

Iranian Vice President Eshaq Jahangiri made no commitments in his speech at the forum. Jahangiri argued that non-Caspian nations shouldn’t meddle in the region’s affairs and charged that the United States’ unilateral policies and its emphasis on sanctions threaten the stability of the region.

Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev, left, and Turkmenistan’s President Gurbanguly Berdymukhamedov sit inside the Russian-made limousine Aurus Senat prior to a session of the First Caspian Economic Forum in Turkmenbashi, Turkmenistan, August 12, 2019. (Dmitry Astakhov, Sputnik, Government Pool Photo via AP)

Turkmenistan’s President Gurbanguly Berdymukhamedov, who has wielded all-encompassing power since taking office in 2006, styling himself as the former Soviet republic’s Arkadag (protector), told the forum that the Caspian energy riches should provide a powerful incentive for the region’s development.

Turkmenistan and Azerbaijan have yet to agree on how to share the reserves under the seabed. That has impeded progress of the Trans-Caspian natural gas pipeline that would carry Turkmen gas across the sea to Azerbaijan and further on to Western markets.

“It’s a very sensitive issue,” said Bahram Huseynov, a vice president of Azerbaijan’s state oil company SOCAR. “No concrete steps have been made yet and it’s too early to discuss specifics.”

Huseynov added that demilitarization of the sea border between Azerbaijan and Turkmenistan could facilitate the talks on dividing the energy riches.