Iran says will not back down from its rights on Caspian status
The principle of justice must be preserved while determining the legal status of the Caspian Sea, and Iran "will not retreat" from its rights on this issue, the Iranian president's special envoy for the Caspian issues was quoted by IRNA news agency as saying.
Mohammad Mehdi Akhundzadeh told a recent conference on Caspian Sea affairs in the province of Gulustan that Iran is drafting a document aimed at protecting its rights in the division of the Caspian.
He also said Tehran will not give any reason for conflict between the littoral countries - Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, Turkmenistan, Russia and Iran, adding that all coastal states must "show solidarity" on the status issue.
Azerbaijan, Russia and Kazakhstan signed an agreement in 2001 on dividing the Caspian’s northern area into national sectors, with Azerbaijan and Russia each possessing 19 percent, while the Central Asian state received 29 percent. However, Iran and Turkmenistan did not sign the agreement.
Iran wants all resources shared equally among five states, even though its coast accounts for less than 14 percent.
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