The ambassador to Azerbaijan has described the outcome of the recent Caspian Sea summit as "positive" and "constructive", saying the meeting was a good indication of collective resolve among member states to further strengthen cooperation.
Mohsen Pak Ayeen said, "The agreements signed during the summit sought to meet the interests of all littoral states."
"All Caspian Sea littoral states remained unified that the militarization of the basin and presence of foreign military forces should be avoided."
"Such an agreement could protect the basin against extremism, terrorism and drug smuggling and at the same time prevent foreign intervention in the region," the diplomat told Trend News Agency on Saturday.
The 4th summit of the Caspian Sea littoral states was held in the southern Russian city of Astrakhan last week. Iran, Russia, Kazakhstan, Azerbaijan, and Turkmenistan are the five littoral states of the resource-rich sea. He also stressed the need for cooperation in the fields of tourism, fishing, maritime trade as well as mutual investments between the states.
In the Astrakhan summit, the heads of five Caspian Sea states agreed on the principles of cooperation and signed a political statement which according to experts paved the way for finalizing a convention on the legal regime of the land-locked sea in the next summit to be held in Kazakhstan in 2015.
