On October 27, the regular meeting of authorized representatives of the Caspian littoral states commenced in Ashgabat. During the meeting held at the Caspian Sea Institute, the parties are discussing the draft Intergovernmental Agreement on cooperation in marine scientific research. The meeting will conclude its work on October 28, as reported by the Press Service of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Turkmenistan.

This meeting in Ashgabat is aimed at strengthening the legal framework for conducting scientific research in the Caspian Sea. The document under discussion is being prepared based on an international initiative put forward by the National Leader of the Turkmen people, Chairman of the Halk Maslahaty of Turkmenistan Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedov, at the 5th Caspian Summit held in Aktau in August 2018. At that time, the Hero-Arkadag proposed creating a systematic platform for joint five-sided scientific research.

Previous rounds of negotiations clearly demonstrated the keen interest of all coastal states in developing unified and common approaches. Current deliberations are likewise expected to achieve major progress in fully agreeing upon the remaining provisions of the draft Agreement and preparing the document for its final stage.