Caspian Sea
The Caspian Sea divides the Eurasian landmass, separating the mountainous Caucasus region to the west from the deserts of Central Asia to the east. At 372,000 square kilometers in area, the peanut-shaped Caspian Sea is the world's largest inland lake, enclosed by Azerbaijan, Iran, Kazakhstan, Russia, and Turkmenistan. The Caspian basin is twenty-eight meters below sea level and is fed mainly by the Volga River, which flows southeast from Russia. The salty lake plunges to a depth of about one thousand meters in the south, but is only somewhat over three meters deep in the northern waters. The Caspian is a seasonal habitat for birds migrating from Europe and Asia, including flamingos and the rare white-tailed eagle. Baku, Astrakhan, Aqtau, Atyrau, and Makhachkala are the most important ports.
Oil and Natural Gas
The Caspian Sea contains some of the world's largest deposits of oil and natural gas. Hydrocarbon exploitation in the Caspian Sea was limited during the Soviet era, but since the dissolution of the Soviet Union in 1991, the Caspian basin's huge, undeveloped natural resources have been the source of much international attention. Previously, the sea's legal status was governed by 1921 and 1940 treaties between the Soviet Union and Iran, but since Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, and Turkmenistan received their independence, the Caspian littoral states have been unable to agree on a new legal regime governing the use of the surface, water, and subsea hydrocarbon resources. Despite the absence of a multilateral agreement, several countries already have begun oil and natural gas exploration in the Caspian. International energy consortiums, such as the Azerbaijan International Operating Company, have invested billions of dollars in developing infrastructure to develop and export the oil and natural gas.
Caviar
The Caspian Sea is also the source of about 90 percent of the world's caviar. However, the lack of an international agreement safeguarding the sea's environment has led to overfishing and poaching of sturgeon, the fish whose roe or eggs are used to make the delicacy, resulting in dwindling fish stocks. Environmentalists have warned that poaching of beluga, the largest and rarest sturgeon, is threatening to push the species into extinction. Legal trade in Caspian caviar is estimated to be worth $100 million per year, but the illegal catch in the four former Soviet republics is believed to be ten to twelve times higher. In spring 2001, the United Nations Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES) banned exports of caviar from Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, Russia, and Turkmenistan. Despite opposition from environmentalists in March 2002, CITES lifted the export ban on the former Soviet republics, citing improved management of their sturgeon stocks.
Andrew D. Neff
Further Reading
Ebel, Robert E., and Rajan Menon, eds. (2000) Energy and Conflict in Central Asia and the Caucasus. Lanham, MD: Rowman & Littlefield.
Gokay, Bulent, ed. (2001) The Politics of Caspian Oil. New York: St. Martin's Press.
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