Five leaders from the Caspian littoral states, which include Russia, Iran, Kazakhstan, Azerbaijan, and Turkmenistan, met in Baku for the third Caspian Summit November 18-20. Once again, they discussed a draft agreement on the legal regime to be used to divide the Caspian's rich natural resources, but failed to resolve a fundamental disagreement about the principle of division.
Within a week of meetings on October 21-22 between Russian President Dmitry Medvedev and Turkmen President Gurbanguly Berdymukhamedov, the Turkmen Foreign Ministry blasted the Kremlin for misleading statements in the Russian media about the talks.
Azerbaijan and Turkey are close to resolving a two-year gas-pricing dispute that has soured relations between the two strategic partners and which has stalled development of the Nabucco pipeline.
