ASHGABAT, Turkmenistan, August 14. Turkmenistan's Foreign Minister Rashid Meredov expressed hope for a meeting of foreign ministers of Caspian states by the end of this year, Trend reports via the press service of Turkmenistan's Foreign Ministry.
Meredov made the remark during the ongoing International Conference titled "Caspian Sea: Symbol of Peace and Friendship" in Turkmenistan.
According to him, the initiative to convene this meeting belongs to Russia.
He emphasized the importance of actively utilizing existing mechanisms of cooperation in the Caspian region, especially within the framework of the Convention on the Legal Status of the Caspian Sea.
Meredov also expressed his concern about the "slow progress achieved since the adoption of this convention five years ago".
Previously, the Foreign Ministry of Turkmenistan said that the country is ready to cooperate with partners on the implementation of the Trans-Caspian Gas Pipeline.
The ministry reminded the public that the international legal validity of the project is beyond doubt after the adoption in 2018 by five coastal states of the fundamental document regulating the key principles of policy in the Caspian Sea, the Convention on the Legal Status of the Caspian Sea.
In this regard, the ministry referred to Article 14 of the convention, in particular, stating that parties can lay cables and pipelines along the bottom of the Caspian Sea and that the determination of the route for laying underwater cables and pipelines is carried out in agreement with the party through the sector of the bottom through which the underwater cable or pipeline should be conducted.
Thus, to date, the construction of the Trans-Caspian Gas Pipeline is directly related to the delimitation of the seabed between Turkmenistan and Azerbaijan.