Joint Action Needed to Protect Caspian Sea Ecosystem, Putin Says

Dragon Media News Desk

Russian President Vladimir Putin has called on Caspian littoral states to develop joint measures to protect the sea’s ecosystem. Addressing the Caspian Environmental Summit in Turkmenbashi on October 9, he described the Caspian Sea’s falling water level as one of the region’s most pressing challenges.

According to Putin, about 20,000 square kilometres along Russia’s Caspian coastline have dried up over the past 20 years. Russia spends substantial budget funds each year on dredging to keep shipping routes navigable, he said. Research by Russian and foreign experts indicates that climate change is the main cause of the decline in the sea’s water level, Putin added.

Putin called for full use of existing international institutions to protect the Caspian ecosystem, particularly the Conference of the Parties to the 2003 Tehran Convention on the Protection of the Marine Environment of the Caspian Sea.

He also outlined Russia’s proposal to create a digital twin of the Caspian Sea. The model would use artificial intelligence to analyse changes in evaporation, precipitation and river inflows, helping produce reliable projections of future water levels.

Protecting the Caspian ecosystem requires financial resources and intergovernmental mechanisms, as well as highly qualified specialists across the natural sciences, Putin said. Russia would continue to support closer cooperation among the littoral countries to safeguard the ecosystem, promote sustainable development and improve people’s quality of life.