Five Caspian Sea countries have renewed calls for stronger environmental cooperation during COP7 in Tehran. Iran’s Environment Department chief, Shina Ansari, emphasized shared responsibility for protecting the region’s interconnected ecosystem. She urged governments to turn existing commitments into practical, measurable environmental action.
Representatives from Azerbaijan, Iran, Kazakhstan, Russia and Turkmenistan attended the meeting alongside United Nations bodies and international organizations. Officials, scientists, academics, civil society representatives and environmental experts also participated. Consequently, the gathering provided a regional platform for addressing mounting pressures on the Caspian ecosystem.
The Tehran Convention, signed in 2003, established a common legal framework for protecting the Caspian Sea. Since then, cooperation has expanded into pollution response, biodiversity conservation and environmental impact assessment. However, officials now face additional challenges involving pollution, habitat degradation, climate change and changing water levels.
Ansari stressed that these threats cross national borders and therefore require coordinated responses. She called for stronger data-sharing arrangements and joint environmental monitoring among the five littoral states. Furthermore, she highlighted satellite monitoring, remote sensing, ecological modeling and shared databases as useful technological tools.
The Caspian Sea supports distinctive biodiversity, including the Caspian seal and important sturgeon breeding grounds. Moreover, millions of people around the sea depend on its environmental resources and economic activities. Therefore, continued ecosystem degradation could create wider consequences for coastal communities and regional economies.
Ansari also discussed environmental damage associated with recent attacks in Iran. She argued that pollution and damage to environmental infrastructure can create consequences lasting beyond conflicts. Accordingly, she called for environmental resilience to become part of broader sustainable development efforts.
Iran expressed readiness to deepen cooperation with neighboring states and international partners. COP7’s next challenge will involve converting shared commitments into coordinated programs and measurable results. Ultimately, stronger cooperation could help improve monitoring, conservation and long-term resilience across the Caspian Sea.