Moscow Hosts 45th Meeting of AWG on Caspian Status

In Moscow, June 8-10 the 45^th meeting of the Ad Hoc Working Group (AWG) on the Convention on the legal status of the Caspian Sea was held at the level of Deputy Foreign Ministers of the Caspian states.

As the press service of the Foreign Ministry said, the Azerbaijani delegation is headed by Deputy Minister Khalaf Khalafov.

The communiqué following the meeting noted that the heads of the delegations emphasized the special importance of the Moscow meeting in the light of the meeting of the Foreign Ministers of the Caspian states in Kazakhstan, and also noted the need for a speedy completion of the work on the Convention on the legal status of the Caspian Sea.

In accordance with the prior agreement, the AWG discussion was focused on issues of navigation mode and jurisdiction of the coastal states in the Caspian area, and delimitation of the seabed in order to use the subsoil. The agreed wordings were recorded in the draft Convention.

The delegations welcomed the outcome of the talks and thanked the Russian Federation for the excellent organization of the meeting.

The next meeting of the Ad Hoc Working Group will be held in Kazakhstan. Dates of the meeting will be agreed through diplomatic channels. -06d--