Representative of Iranian president to discuss Caspian Sea status with Russian colleagues

The representative of the Iranian president on the status of the
Caspian Sea, Mohammad Mehdi Akhundzadeh, will visit Moscow from
January 17-18, the Iranian embassy in Russia reports.

The purpose of the visit of Akhundzadeh is to discuss issues on the
status of the Caspian Sea with officials of the Russian Federation.

In November 2003 the Caspian States signed the Framework Convention
for the Protection of the Marine Environment of the Caspian Sea.

In July 1998 Russia and Kazakhstan signed an agreement on the
delimitation of the northern Caspian Sea in order to exercise
sovereign rights for subsoil use, and in May 2002 a Protocol to the
Agreement was signed.

At the end of January the working group on the status of the Caspian
Sea will meet in Baku.