Tokayev outlines Caspian priorities on oil, water and ecology

Kazakh President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev said Kazakhstan has shared a plan with Azerbaijan to increase the volume of Kazakh oil transported via the Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan pipeline. He made the remarks in a speech at the 7th summit of the Conference on Interaction and Confidence-Building Measures in Asia (CICA) in Baku, which he travelled to on 14 October. Tokayev said the Caspian Sea region is of special importance not only to its own region but to global energy security.

Tokayev noted that the Asia and Pacific region is home to 60 percent of the world's population but holds only 35 percent of global water resources. He proposed a CICA water resources partnership to support technology exchange, joint research and water-saving solutions, and recalled Kazakhstan's initiative to create an International Water Organization within the UN system.

He said investment in human capital is essential for such initiatives and called on member states to deepen cooperation in this area. Kazakhstan is ready to offer scholarships to students from the 28 CICA member states and research grants to scientists, and a research scholarship programme could be launched next year.