[Edit]Current situation

Caspian sea, Azerbaijan.

Russia, Kazakhstan and Azerbaijan have agreed to a solution about their sectors. There are no problems between Kazakhstan and Turkmenistan, but the latter is not actively participating, so there is no agreement either. Azerbaijan is at odds with Iran over some oil fields that the both states claim. There have been occasions where Iranian patrol boats have opened fire at vessels sent by Azerbaijan for exploration into the disputed region. There are similar tensions between Azerbaijan and Turkmenistan (the latter claims that the former has pumped more oil than agreed from a field, recognized by both parties as shared). Less acute are the issues between Turkmenistan and Iran. Regardless, the southern part of the sea remains disputed.

• Russia and Kazakhstan signed a treaty, according to which, they divide the northern part of the Caspian Sea between them into two sectors along the median line. Each sector is an exclusive zone of its state. Thus all resources, seabed and surface are exclusive to the particular state.

• Russia and Azerbaijan signed a similar treaty regarding their common border.

• Kazakhstan and Azerbaijan signed a similar treaty regarding their common border.

• Iran does not recognize the bilateral agreements between the other littoral states. Iran continues to insist on a single multilateral agreement between all five littoral states (as the only way to achieve 1/5-th share).

• The position of Turkmenistan is unclear.

After Russia adopted the median line sectoral division and the three treaties already signed between some littoral states this is looking like the realistic method for regulating the Caspian borders. The Russian sector is fully defined. The Kazakhstan sector is not fully defined, but is not disputed either. Azerbaijan's, Turkmenistan's and Iran's sectors are not fully defined. It is not clear if the issue of Volga-access to vessels from Azerbaijan and Kazakhstan is covered by their agreements with Russia and also what the conditions are for Volga-access for vessels from Turkmenistan and Iran.^{[citation needed]}

The Caspian littoral States meeting in 2007 signed an agreement that bars any ship not flying the national flag of a littoral state from entering Caspian waters.^[33]

[Edit]Cross-border inflow

UNECE recognizes several rivers that cross international borders which flow into the Caspian Sea.^[34] These are:

River	Countries
Atrek River	IR, TM
Kura River	AM, AZ, GE, IR, TR
Ural River	KZ, RU
Samur River	AZ, RU
Sulak River	GE, RU
Terek River	GE, RU

Transport

Although the Caspian Sea is endorheic, its main tributary, the Volga, is connected by important shipping canals with the Don River (and thus the Black Sea) and with the Baltic Sea, with branch canals to Northern Dvina and to the White Sea.

Another Caspian tributary, the Kuma River, is connected by an irrigation canal with the Don basin as well.

Several scheduled ferry services (including train ferries) operate on the Caspian Sea, including:

• a line between Türkmenbaşy, Turkmenistan (formerly Krasnovodsk) and Baku.

• a line between Baku and Aktau.

• several lines between cities in Iran and Russia.

The ferries are mostly used for cargo, with only the Baku – Aktau and Baku – Turkmenbashi also allowing passengers.

Plan of Seminar: