An international scientific and practical conference “The Caspian Sea – the Sea of Friendship and Peace” opened in the “Avaza” national tourist zone, timed to coincide with the Caspian Sea Day.

The event is attended by representatives of diplomatic missions of the Caspian states – Azerbaijan, Iran, Kazakhstan and Russia, as well as delegates from international organizations, including the UN, the UN Environment Programme (UNEP), the UN Development Programme (UNDP), the European Union and the OSCE.

The conference plans to discuss the implementation of the Framework Convention for the Protection of the Marine Environment of the Caspian Sea (Tehran Convention), the ornithological significance of the Caspian Sea waters and the role of the Turkmen Hazar State Nature Reserve in preserving the region’s biological diversity.

The forum participants will also consider issues of compliance with environmental standards in the work of the Turkmenbashy International Sea Port and prospects for the development of ecotourism in the “Avaza” National Tourist Zone.

Experts from the International Institute of the Law of the Sea, the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) and the World Bank will take part in the conference via video link.

The event will discuss the prospects for hydrometeorological cooperation between the Caspian countries, as well as the role of the Caspian Sea in strengthening good-neighborly relations between the states of the region.