Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif told a deputy-level meeting of Caspian Sea states on Sunday that any prospective deal on the legal status of the sea should mainly aim to promote peace and stability among the five parties.
"Peace and stability, sustainable development and fair delimitation of the maritime space are of paramount importance and should be assigned high priority in efforts to determine the legal regime of the Caspian Sea," Zarif was quoted as saying by IRNA.
"Definitely, this would be possible by building mutual trust and consensus, upholding collective interests and promoting mutual understanding, convergence and a sense of responsibility."
The two-day 47th meeting of deputy foreign ministers of Caspian neighbors, namely Iran, Russia, Kazakhstan, Azerbaijan and Turkmenistan, got underway in Tehran on Sunday to follow up discussions aimed at working out the details of a draft convention on the legal status of the sea.
Caspian negotiations have continued since 1991 but have yet to produce a comprehensive accord.
Officials from the five states last convened a ministerial meeting on July 12 in the Kazakh capital Astana.
Kazakhstan is slated to host the upcoming Fifth Caspian Summit.
The last presidential summit took place in the Russian port city of Astrakhan in 2014, during which an agreement was signed to promote the sustainable use of Caspian Sea and protect its marine life.
They issued a political declaration that outlined the key principles of their activity in the Caspian Sea, which would form the convention's cornerstone.
It was agreed that the greater part of the sea area remains in the countries' common use.
"This makes it possible to rule out the sort of misunderstandings and tensions in our inter-state relations that previously could arise over different interpretations of the rules governing the Caspian waters," the declaration said.
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