In 2020-2021, it is expected to implement new economic projects in the Caspian sea and form a geo-economic strategy for the integration of the Caspian States.
Today, the multilevel system of cooperation needs an effective and modern mechanism of business and trade and economic cooperation. Its balanced and internationally recognized legal framework has already been established. The Convention on the legal status of the Caspian Sea is ratified now by all countries except Iran.
Azerbaijan has friendly relations with all Caspian countries and can act as a key link in the issue of integration. Baku demonstrates its readiness to connect the South with the North, and the East with the West, that will make the Caspian region as open as possible for economic cooperation with third countries.
There is a great potential for further development of the cooperation between Kazakhstan and Azerbaijan in the fields of transport and transit transportation, information and communication technologies, energy, industry and agriculture. Both countries are implementing large-scale infrastructure projects to benefit from location of two countries on shortest route passing through the East-West International Corridor. At the same time, joint efforts are implemented in order to widely apply multimodal transportation in the Caspian basin.
An important component of any economic projects in the region is to ensure the safety of their implementation. Among all the Caspian States, Russia is the only country that is able to achieve this by building a constructive dialogue with Tehran, as well as monitoring the implementation of treaty obligations by the Caspian five countries.
Currently, Russia is seeking to involve the coastal States in joint economic projects and to ensure investments of the Gulf States in the Caspian region.
On November 8, 2017, the Russian government approved the Strategy for the development of seaports of the Caspian Sea, road and rail trips to them until 2030. The strategy is aimed at creating a sustainable transport and logistics corridor, developing trade and tourism primarily with Iran, India and the Gulf States. It provides for the development of the Caspian ports of Astrakhan, Olya and Makhachkala and the construction of a deep-water port in Kaspiysk until 2025.
The Russian government is also promoting a new project to expand internal transit links between the Caspian and Black Seas – the Eurasia channel. Guided by security and economic motives, the project aims to compete with other East-West transport corridors, promote the development of economic relations between Russia and countries such as Kazakhstan, India, Iran, Pakistan, China and Vietnam, as well as strengthen the position of the Caspian countries in trade between China and the West.
There is a geopolitical struggle between the leading players in the world, and soon it is the Black sea and Caspian regions that can become the arena of struggle. the Caspian countries should understand as soon as possible that only taking into account each other’s national interests, they can come to the most optimal decisions on issues on which there are disagreements.
There are hotbeds of instability in the immediate vicinity of the Caspian Sea, so it is necessary to realize the responsibility of all Caspian States.
The Caspian region has always been the intersection point of the geopolitical and economic interests of many leading states, political and business circles, various ethnic and religious groups. And recently it has become one of the key regions of global politics. First of all, because of its natural resources. Together with the Gulf countries, it forms the so-called energy ellipse, in which about 70% of the world’s oil reserves and 40% of natural gas are concentrated. For the Caspian littoral countries this, of course, is a geostrategic advantage and one of the most important areas of cooperation.
But the modern economy is not only oil and gas production. Digital technologies, clean energy, environmental management, free movement of goods and services are the factors that make any country strong and competitive today.
The five Caspian states should not be left out of these trends. Not only the raw material component should determine the economic profile of states. In the 21st century the Caspian region should be associated with optimal transport infrastructure, high-tech and safe production, incentive measures for investors, unique tourism products.