Turkmen, Azerbaijani to boost ties

Turkmen, Azerbaijani to boost ties

	Published : Tue, 13 Mar 2007 20:40 By : Agencies Print this Story

ASHGABAT, Turkmenistan (AP) - Turkmenistan's new president and his Azerbaijani counterpart agreed Tuesday to expand ties between the two energy-rich ex-Soviet nations which have been at odds over the Caspian Sea division.

Turkmenistan's President Gurbanguli Berdymukhamedov and Ilham Aliev of Azerbaijan reached an agreement to set up bilateral commissions to boost relations in different fields, the Turkmen presidential press service said.

The two presidents also agreed to exchange visits. Berdymukhamedov was elected last month to succeed Saparmurat Niyazov who died in December.

Aliev's office said the two leaders emphasized the need for 'taking joint steps in the regional cooperation.'

Azerbaijan and Turkmenistan both claimed some of rich oil deposits located on the seabed, the dispute that has been one of the obstacles in the long-stalled talks between the Caspian nations.

Talks on the division of the Caspian between five littoral states -- Russia, Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, Turkmenistan and Iran -- remain deadlocked. Iran has insisted that each of the five coastal states get an equal portion of the seabed, while most other countries want the division based on shoreline, which would give Iran a smaller share.

The Caspian, which is believed to hold the world's third-largest oil reserves, has acquired strategic importance as the United States and other Western nations seek alternatives to Persian Gulf oil. Multinational oil companies are eager to play a role in developing the sea's energy resources, but the unresolved legal status of the sea has fomented tension and hindered exploration of its reserves.