On December 5, the foreign ministers of the Caspian states met in Moscow. The foreign ministers of Azerbaijan, Russia, Iran, Kazakhstan, Turkmenistan, Jeyhun Bayramov, Sergey Lavrov, Hossein Amir-Abdollahian, Murat Nurtleu, and Rashit Meredow took part in the meeting, the Press Office of the Azerbaijani Foreign Ministry reported.

At the meeting, views were exchanged on sectoral cooperation between the Caspian littoral states in various fields, including economy, trade, investments, energy security, communications, environmental protection, and other fields.

Minister Jeyhun Bayramov noted that holding meetings played an important role in the discussion of current issues on the current cooperation agenda in the Caspian region. Bayramov stressed the importance of strengthening the existing legal framework between the Caspian littoral states for joint use of the Caspian Sea for peace, friendship, and solidarity, as well as the entry into force of the Convention "On the Legal Status of the Caspian Sea" as soon as possible. "In addition to being rich in hydrocarbon resources, there is a wide potential among the states located in the Caspian Sea basin, which occupies an important geostrategic position in several areas, including economic, trade, investments, alternative energy, and other directions. The use of this potential, in turn, will contribute to the development of transport and communications, infrastructure, and technologies in the region. In this direction, it will contribute to the development of the East-West and North-South transport corridors, including the use of opportunities of the Trans-Caspian International Transport Route," he noted.

According to the minister, one of the most important challenges facing the Caspian countries is the shallowing of the Caspian Sea and the resulting environmental problems. "In this direction, the President of Azerbaijan, Ilham Aliyev, took the initiative to create a relevant expert group, and work is currently underway to organize a relevant meeting of experts in Baku," he noted.

During a meeting with his colleagues from the Caspian littoral states, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov noted that the format of meetings of the Caspian littoral states' foreign ministers is growing in demand.

Lavrov added that the P5 countries are united in the fact that the demand for such a format is growing and will continue to grow. "This is due to the fact that working within this framework allows finding key solutions to the problems of regional interaction," he said.

He emphasized the vast potential of the Caspian region's development in trade, economic, environmental, scientific, humanitarian, transport, and transit spheres. "It is of strategic importance in terms of creating the North-South International Transport Corridor," Lavrov added. "Deepening cooperation between the Caspian littoral states is relevant from the point of view of the multipolar world order, the emergence of new centers of global development," Lavrov said.

Lavrov also emphasized serious common challenges in the region. "Separately, I would like to outline serious common challenges that the Caspian littoral states have to deal with. These are environmental security problems, shoaling of the Caspian Sea, and preservation of its bioresources. The solution to these issues requires harmonization of our actions," he said.

"According to the 2018 Convention on the Legal Status of the Caspian Sea, only the Caspian Five has exclusive competence in solving problems related to the Caspian Sea," the minister reminded. "We consider this a cornerstone of the emerging Caspian community, a pledge of ownership of the region's development and responsibility for the processes taking place in it," Lavrov noted. 

The Russian Foreign Minister invited his colleagues to focus on practical issues and draft documents under consideration by the P5+1. "Traditionally, we will touch upon certain issues on the international agenda that concern the Caspian region. I am convinced that today's meeting will contribute to strengthening our region's position as a zone of peace, harmony, good neighborliness, and fruitful interstate cooperation," Lavrov concluded.