TEHRAN, June 20 (RIA Novosti) - A draft convention on the new legal status of the Caspian Sea will not be ready for a summit of Caspian state leaders, Russia's foreign minister said Wednesday.
Sergei Lavrov, attending a conference of Caspian states' foreign ministers in Iran's capital, proposed approving "an interim document, which would introduce basic and universally-acceptable rules in the Caspian region."
The Caspian Sea's status has long been under discussion among the five littoral states - Azerbaijan, Russia, Kazakhstan, Turkmenistan and Iran - which have tried to divide the sea's substantial reserves, including oil, natural gas, and fish, particularly caviar-bearing sturgeon.
"The second Caspian summit could fix in its final declaration a number of important provisions on the sea's status, which the sides agreed on during negotiations on the convention, and it could at the same time outline means of resolving contentious issues," Lavrov said.
Russia, Azerbaijan and Kazakhstan signed an agreement in 2003 to divide the northern 64% of the sea between themselves, but Iran and Turkmenistan rejected the proposal.
The first summit of the Caspian states' leaders took place in 2002 in Turkmenistan's capital Ashgabat, and the leaders agreed to hold another summit in 2003. However, the meeting has since been postponed.
