TEHRAN – The Head of the Ports and Maritime Organization of the Islamic Republic, Muhammad Shakibi-Nasab, says Iran has proposed forming a consortium of Caspian Sea littoral states to jointly monitor the significant decline in the sea’s water level.
Shakibi-Nasab said the issue is being pursued through economic diplomacy in cooperation with the Iranian Foreign Ministry, while the Ports and Maritime Organization is providing technical support and maintaining separate contacts with Caspian littoral states.
He said the falling water level has become a major concern for maritime transport and could develop into a serious new challenge for the Caspian Sea.
In this regard, Shakibi-Nasab said Iran has proposed that countries with ports on the Caspian Sea and those using its maritime transport capacity establish a joint specialized working group to coordinate monitoring of the trend.
He said the proposal has been submitted to the Foreign Ministry, adding that the organization is also pursuing the issue directly with the littoral states.
Meanwhile, Shakibi-Nasab said the decline in the Caspian Sea’s water level is not limited to Iran and affects all countries along the sea.
He said coordination with Caspian countries is underway and that the United Nations is also independently following the issue.
On operational measures, Shakibi-Nasab identified dredging at ports as one of the necessary steps amid the falling water level and said alternative plans and joint measures may also be needed among countries using the maritime route.
Russia, Kazakhstan and Turkmenistan are among the Caspian countries with ports that use the sea’s maritime capacity, he said.
However, Shakibi-Nasab said regional cooperation has not yet fully met expectations in practical and operational terms, despite countries expressing willingness to cooperate during negotiations.
He said efforts are continuing because a lack of cooperation would also seriously affect the maritime businesses and transport systems of the other Caspian states.
Shakibi-Nasab also highlighted the importance of cooperation with Russia, saying more than 80% of Iran’s maritime exchanges through its northern ports are currently conducted via Russian ports.
He said the scale of these exchanges requires Iran and Russia to pursue joint plans and cooperation, warning that Russian ports would also suffer significant damage if the issue is not addressed.