Azerbaijan, Central Asia environmental centre explore Caspian cooperation

Azerbaijan’s Ambassador to Turkmenistan Gismat Gozalov and the project office of the Regional Environmental Centre for Central Asia (RECCA) in Turkmenistan have discussed expanding environmental cooperation under the “Central Asia plus Azerbaijan” format.

The working meeting between Gozalov and Mergen Kepbanov, director of the RECCA project office in Turkmenistan, was held in Ashgabat on September 22, the Azerbaijani Embassy in Turkmenistan told Report news agency.

The participants stressed the importance of further strengthening environmental cooperation between Azerbaijan and organisations from Central Asian countries.

“The parties considered opportunities for cooperation in the areas of climate change, conservation of the biodiversity of the Caspian Sea, water resources management, combating land degradation, development of renewable energy and environmental education, as well as involving young people in the environmental agenda,” the embassy said.

Particular attention was paid to reducing methane emissions. Kepbanov said an international conference on the issue was scheduled to take place in Ashgabat on October 29-30 with the support of the RECCA project office.

The participants also expressed interest in organising joint conferences, roundtable discussions and expert meetings in Ashgabat and Baku.

They also highlighted the importance of expanding contacts among government institutions, diplomatic missions, scientific and research organisations and expert communities in Azerbaijan and Turkmenistan.

The meeting concluded with both sides reaffirming their readiness to continue the working dialogue and expand partnerships in the fields of environmental protection, climate action and sustainable development.

By Tamilla Hasanova