Baku, Azerbaijan, Dec. 24
By Leman Zeynalova – Trend:
Russia and Azerbaijan intend to create a trans-Caspian transport line, as well as develop cruise tourism in the Caspian Sea, Russian Ambassador to Azerbaijan Mikhail Bocharnikov said at a press conference in Baku Dec. 24, Trend reports.
On Aug.12, a summit of leaders of Russia, Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, Turkmenistan and Iran was held in the Kazakh city of Aktau, which resulted in the signing of a historic document for the region - the convention on the status of the Caspian Sea.
“I am very pleased that this is considered to be a very important event in Azerbaijan,” the ambassador said. “This convention allows filling existing agreements with concrete content.”
He noted that there still remain delimitation issues, but not between Russia and Azerbaijan. “Cooperation will be carried out to ensure the safety of navigation, the preservation of biological resources, etc.,” the ambassador added.
At the 5th Caspian Summit, held Aug. 12 in Aktau, Russian President Vladimir Putin said that "Peter The Great" cruise ship is being built in Russia, which will be able to perform all-round cruises across the Caspian Sea to all the five Caspian states.
Two types of cruises are planned – short (7-8 days) and long (13-14 days) cruises. The short ones will call to several ports in the northern and southern parts of the Caspian Sea, while long cruises will call to the ports of all five coastal states.
The commissioning of the ship is scheduled for the next year approximately.
Most of the Caspian cruises are planned to begin and end in Baku. In the future, "Peter the Great" will also take cruises connecting the Caspian, Azov and Black seas.