Deputy Foreign Minister of Kazakhstan: We will have to hold a lot of meetings in order to reach a full agreement

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The 28th meeting of the joint working group on the legal status of the Caspian Sea has ended. The sides say there is progress. But the final agreement has not been signed and it is not known when it will be signed. How do you assess the Baku round of the negotiations?

The negotiations were constructive. The instructions given by the heads of state in the recent Baku summit are being executed. Of course, every country defends its own interests. But the sides find a common language. There are a lot of sensitive points here, because the question is the international legislative basis that will determine the fate of the Caspian Sea. I can say that the sides' positions have come closer. I suppose that we will have to hold a lot of meetings in order to reach a full agreement.

At the meeting of the working group the officials of some countries said they would come to a final decision by the end of the year. Do you think the convention on the legal status of the Caspian Sea can be signed at the next meeting of the presidents?

The next meeting of the leaders of the Caspian littoral states will take place in Russia and there is a common agreement on it. The proposal for acceleration of the work on draft convention was also welcomed. You can be sure that Kazakhstan will make all efforts toward this. Now we are scheduling the agenda of the next meeting in Moscow. The work has been intensified. After the Moscow meeting, Kazakhstan will propose to meet again for discussion of the issues. Amid such dynamics I consider that we will come to the meeting of the presidents with the serious agreements. I have optimist view on it.

About 10 years ago Azerbaijan and Kazakhstan signed a bilateral agreement on seabed division in a water area between the two countries. Then similar agreements were signed with Russia too. What do you think can such bilateral agreements create a good basis for a five-party common agreement?

The legal status of the Caspian Sea should be determined jointly by five littoral states. Every country accepts this reality. It needs in consensus. I consider that the bilateral agreements between Azerbaijan and Kazakhstan or Kazakhstan and Russia can be a good basis for the common agreement between the Caspian littoral states.

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