February 04, 2004
For a decade Washington has been backing the Turkish and Azerbaihan governments to steer the export of Caspian region crude oil away from Russia. Russia's newest riposte has been to ally the Russian and Iranian oil industries, and open up the shortest, cheapest, and most lucrative oil route of all, southwards out of the Caspian to Iran.
The economics of the southward route are the latest blow for the Bush Administration, as it tries to redraw the geography of the Caucasus on an anti-Russian map. But for oil exporters and shippers in the Caspian, President George Bush's jawboning looks to be as futile as King Canute telling the sea to roll backwards.
Early oil from Azerbaijan's newest offshore oilfields has been piped northwestwards through the Russian pipeline system to Novorossiysk port, on the Black Sea, along with crude from the Caspian shoreline of Kazakhstan. But there have been frequent arguments with the Azeris over volumes and transit fees, and these have led to frequent oil stoppages. Azeri oil for transit across Georgia to Supsa port is a costly trickle, by comparison....cont'd
http://www.russiajournal.com/news/cnews-article.shtml?nd=42376________
Dividing up the Caspian Resources: Iran talks with Azerbaijan,TurkmenistanAs you might already know, Iran used to hold about a 50 % share of the Caspian, while the ex-Soviet states (the "stans") held the other half. Now all these players and outsider interests are attempting to redistribute these resources with the newly independent "stan" states (since the breakup of the USSR).
Iran holds Caspian talks with Azerbaijan, Turkmenistan Almaty. (Interfax) - Iran is holding bilateral talks with Azerbaijan and Turkmenistan on the division of the Caspian Sea, Iranian Ambassador to Kazakhstan Murtazo Saffori said at a press conference in Almaty on Tuesday.
"We are holding talks with our neighbors to reach consensus and mutual understanding as soon as possible, just like Kazakhstan, Russia and Azerbaijan have achieved certain successes," he said.
The ambassador said that a final decision on the legal status of the Caspian Sea may be reached only taking into consideration the opinion of all five Caspian states, and he said that he hopes that talks involving all of the states will have "good results."
Speaking about the Iranian position on the division of the Caspian, Saffori said that "in accordance with existing geographical conditions, Iran is laying claim to about a 20% share of the sea."
The diplomat said that Iran has never insisted on the equal division of the sea between all five states, which would give each state a 20% share.
Regarding the construction of export pipelines from the Caspian region, and particularly the Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan pipeline, he said that "the transportation of fuel from one area to another should take the economics into consideration and should not be under the influence of political interests." ....cont'd
http://www.interfax.com/com?item=Azer&pg=0&id=5696692&req=Azerbaijan’s Geopolitical Intentions Subject of Increasing Speculation Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev’s recent visit to Moscow was marked by speculation surrounding Baku’s geopolitical intentions. For the time being, Ilham Aliyev appears intent on maintaining the so-called "balanced" foreign policy approach instituted by his father, Heidar. Many political analysts believe, however, that Azerbaijan will sooner or later be forced to choose between Russia and the West...cont'd
http://www.eurasianet.org/departments/insight/articles/eav021004a.shtmlCaspian Oil Windfalls: Who Will Benefit? The Open Society Institute has released a report calling for accountability, transparency, and public oversight in the oil and natural gas industries of Azerbaijan and Kazakhstan.
The report, Caspian Oil Windfalls: Who Will Benefit? urges foreign oil companies, their home governments, and international financial institutions to promote good governance and democracy in Azerbaijan and Kazakhstan to ensure that petroleum revenues generate social prosperity and stable governments.
As the United States and its allies prepare to help shape the post-war Iraqi oil regime, we are reminded that security of energy supply has always been a priority of United States national security policy.
Oil booms in the Caspian Basin are expected to make Azerbaijan and Kazakhstan important new energy suppliers for the United States. But the report warns that the lack of good governance and democracy in the two countries could make them less reliable partners....cont'd
http://www.eurasianet.org/caspian.oil.windfalls/
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