Azerbaijan, Baku, Jan.27 / Trend R. Hafizoglu /
Baku hopes to reach an agreement with Tehran on the status of the Caspian Sea, Azerbaijani Foreign Minister Elmar Mammadyarov said in an interview with Russia Today channel's Arabic editorial staff.
Three Caspian states - Azerbaijan, Russia and Kazakhstan - have already reached agreement on defining the status of the sea, there is some convergence of positions with Turkmenistan, he said. If it was possible to agree with four Caspian littoral states, then it is also possible with the fifth littoral state, Mammadyarov said.
In November 2003, the Caspian countries signed the Framework Convention for the Protection of the Marine Environment of the Caspian Sea.
In July 1998, Russia and Kazakhstan signed an agreement on the delimitation of the northern part of the Caspian Sea in order to exercise sovereign rights for subsoil use.
On Nov. 29, 2001 and Feb. 27, 2003, Kazakhstan and Azerbaijan signed an agreement on the delimitation of the Caspian Sea.
Kazakhstan, Azerbaijan and Russia signed an agreement on the delimitation of adjacent sections of the Caspian Sea on May 14, 2003.
At present, Iran holds the position of dividing the Caspian Sea into national sectors.
Mammadyarov voiced his hope that Caspian littoral states will manage to solve this issue soon.