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Charles Gurdon
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Russia Committed to Joint Use of Caspian Waters
Interfax Information Services, B.V. 10/8/2003
URL: http://www.rigzone.com/news/article.asp?a_id=8804
Russia is calling on the other Caspian littoral countries to continue using
the sea's waters jointly, Deputy Foreign Minister Viktor Kalyuzhny told the
KEOGE-2003 international oil and gas conference in Almaty on Wednesday.
"As far as the division of the Caspian Sea's waters is concerned, Russia
wants all the littoral states to have 15-mile zones within which they will
be responsible for the border, customs and other forms of control and have
exclusive fishing rights," Kalyuzhny, who is also the president's envoy on
Caspian issues, said, adding that the remaining area of the sea should be
open to use for all the littoral nations.
Russia does not support the idea of creating national fishing zones in the
Caspian, since this step "would run counter to the principle of joint
management of the Caspian Sea's bio-resources. The littoral states have
adhered to this principle de facto, which has already proved to be useful
and effective for many years," Kalyuzhny said.
Under the principle of joint management of Caspian bio-resources, the
littoral states set common norms and rules regulating the reproduction and
use of bio-resources. These norms deal with issuing fishing licenses, as
well as setting annual fishing quotas and selecting fishing seasons and
areas.
Kalyuzhny added that the joint commission on the Caspian's water resources
effectively manages the sea's bio-resources today. He said that the
commission could continue fulfilling this function after it obtains
international status.
The deputy foreign minister said that providing the littoral states with
special fishing zones outside their 15-mile areas would "concentrate fishing
operations" within national sectors, which would "strongly contradict" the t
raditional generally-accepted procedure of fishing for sturgeon. Kalyuzhny
said that adhering to the principle of joint bio-resources management is the
sole guarantee for normal reproduction of Caspian sturgeon stocks.
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