(IRIBNews)- Iran's Ambassador to Almaty Ramin Mehmandoost said here Sunday that the Islamic Republic of Iran is opposed to laying oil and gas pipelines on Caspian seabed.
He said Iran has repeatedly declared its position on the issue, reports Trend.
There are two reasons for Iran's opposition to the plan namely: 'there is no legal regime has been defined for Caspian Sea' and 'the existing problems pertaining to protecting the sea's environment', he said.
To implement the plan, the legal regime of the Caspian Sea should be drawn up, all five countries sharing common coastline around the Sea should agree with the plan and ensure that the plan does not threaten the environment and is in conformity with inte rnational standards.
Turning to his recent talks with Kazakh Minister of Energy and Mineral Resources Baktykozha Izmukhambetov, he said at the meeting the Kazakh minister called for Iran's consent and cooperation with the construction of pipelines to transfer Kazakh oil and gas to Europe via Caspian Sea waters and Iran declared its concerns accordingly.