Turkmenistan Condemns Azeri Unilateral Action in Caspian Sea
The Foreign Ministry quoting Turkmen Deputy Prime Minister Yolly Gurbanmyradov said that Turkmenistan has given warnings to the Azerbaijan Republic several times since 1992 against unilateral operation in the Caspian Sea.
Turkmenistan and Azerbaijan held negotiations in Ashkhabad on May 2-3 to specify the sea boundary, but they failed to reach an agreement.
Turkmenistan said that it will refer the dispute to the international arbitration.
The Turkmen Foreign Ministry communique said Turkmenistan is seeking to clarify its sea boundary with Azerbaijan according to the meridian line and believes that it is an acceptable way in line with justice.
The communique said that the Turkmen offer has been responded negatively by Azerbaijan adding that Turkmenistan has announced its objection to Azeri unilateral operation in the Caspian Sea, especially at the Caspian oil fields of "Khazar" and "Osman".
The Turkmen Foreign Ministry said that the Azeri unilateral operation in the Caspian Sea runs counter to the international law and required the Azerbaijan government to enter into negotiations with the Caspian states to reach consensus on dividing the sea.
Iran, Russia, Azerbaijan, Turkmenistan and Kazakhstan are the five states bordering the Caspian Sea.
Turkmenistan which is itself a former Soviet Union dismissed the Azeri claim that it is exploiting the sea in line with a decision taken by the former Soviet Union's Oil and Gas Ministry saying that the decision taken by the former soviet union is not legally valid when the Soviet republics have become independent for a decade.
The Turkmen Foreign Ministry called on the foreign firms operating at Khazar and Osman oilfields in the Caspian Sea to stop working until the Caspian states divide the sea.
The Turkmen government called on international organizations including the United Nations to offer legal advice to the Caspian states on the procedure to divide the sea.
Turkmenistan offers to divide the Caspian Sea according to the meridian line, the communique said.