A meeting of government officials from Caspian littoral states was held within the framework of the Third UN Conference on Landlocked Developing Countries.

Axar.az informs that the Cabinet of Ministers reported this.

At the meeting, key directions for joint action to mitigate the negative effects of the Caspian Sea’s shallowing were discussed.

Deputy Prime Minister Shahin Mustafayev noted the steady growth in trade turnover among Caspian states, emphasizing that this provides a strong foundation for deepening cooperation in both bilateral and multilateral formats.

He also highlighted the importance of the Third Caspian Economic Forum held in Tehran in February of this year, especially in terms of expanding trade and mutual investments, as well as deepening cooperation in energy and transport-logistics sectors.

Addressing environmental challenges, Mustafayev noted that the decline in water levels is a regional concern. He reminded attendees that this issue had already been raised by the President of Azerbaijan at the 2022 Ashgabat Summit and that preparations are ongoing for the first meeting of the five-party expert group to be held in Baku.

Additionally, the event included broad discussions on the socio-economic and environmental aspects of changes in the Caspian Sea ecosystem. Particular attention was paid to how water level changes may impact living conditions in coastal areas and regional development.

Mustafayev stressed the need to expand scientific research cooperation and implement joint programs for the protection of fisheries, navigation, and biodiversity in order to minimize the negative effects of sea level changes.

During the meeting, a proposal was made to launch a multilateral cooperation mechanism aimed at establishing common standards and approaches for studying the changes occurring in the Caspian Sea.