Central Asian leaders are slated to gather in the Iranian capital Tehran in March for an economic summit that could turn out to be a pivotal moment for Caspian Basin energy development.
Leaders from Azerbaijan, Afghanistan, Iran, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Pakistan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Turkey and Uzbekistan are all expected to attend the March 11 summit of the Economic Cooperation Organization (ECO). According to a report distributed by the Iranian news agency IRNA, participants "will discuss avenues for broadening commercial and economic cooperation."
Topic #1 in the economic realm is Caspian Basin energy development. The ECO summit offers an ideal venue for regional energy players to discuss an export arrangement that circumvents Russia. The United States has pressed for an export route that connects Central Asian energy producers to Western consumers via a trans-Caspian pipeline. But of late the European Union has helped promote the idea of an export route across Iranian territory.
Recent deals between Turkmenistan and Iran have seemed to heighten the possibility of Tehran becoming an export option. [For background see the Eurasia Insight archive]. Experts note that substantial obstacles still impede Iran's ability to act as a transit nation, notably the international controversy surrounding the Iranian nuclear program and the lack of normalized relations with the United States.
While there is no end in sight on the nuclear question, Iran may be working behind the scenes to foster a rapprochement with the Obama administration. In doing so, Tehran may be looking to Turkey to act as a mediator.
Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan revealed in a recent interview with the British newspaper The Guardian that Iranian officials had approached him, asking for help in undertaking steps that could lead to a normalization of US-Iranian relations. The initial Iranian request came when former US president George W. Bush was still in power. Now that President Barack Obama sits in the Oval Office, Erdogan suggested that the Iranian desire for better relations might meet with a positive response. Obama has signaled that he would be willing to engage Iran.
Highlighting the possibility that Turkish and Iranian officials may be working together to promote a rapprochement with Washington, Turkish President Abdullah Gul announced that he would visit Iran in connection with the ECO summit.
