Geneva Hosts Tehran Convention for Caspian Sea Protection

A meeting of the Special Working Group on establishing the Secretariat for the Tehran Convention for the Protection of the Caspian Sea Environment was held in Geneva on December 18-19, with the participation of envoys from the five Caspian Sea littoral states.

The meeting was attended by the representatives of five Caspian Sea littoral states including Islamic Republic of Iran, Russian Federation, Republic of Kazakhstan, Azerbaijan and Turkmenistan, The Caspian Post reports, citing Iranian media.

The Iranian delegation was headed by Deputy Foreign Minister for the Legal and International Affairs Kazem Gharibabadi and Iran’s special envoy for Caspian Sea Affairs, and also representatives from the Department of Environment (DoE).

During the meeting, documents related to the establishment of the Convention Secretariat in the Caspian region, including agreements on the administrative and financial structure, and privileges and immunities of the Secretariat, were exchanged by the participating parties.

The temporary secretariat of the Tehran Convention, under the strict supervision of United Nations Environment Program (UNEP), is headquartered in Geneva, Switzerland and setting up a permanent secretariat and its establishment in the Caspian region countries is an important step towards protecting this unique water area and strengthening regional cooperation.