At the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) summit, President of Kazakhstan Kassym-Jomart Tokayev described the ongoing decline of the Caspian Sea as a dire situation and called for joint action.
He proposed establishing a specialised Centre for Water Analysis in Astana under the auspices of the organisation, according to Akorda.
Water levels in the Caspian have been falling since the mid-1990s and, Tokayev stressed, the trend has now reached a critical point.
«I want to draw your attention to a very delicate but serious matter. This dire situation around the Caspian Sea is approaching an environmental disaster,» his press service quoted him as saying.
The Kazakh president underlined that the issue should become a priority in the long-term agenda of consultations among member states, emphasising that coordinated measures are essential to address the ecological challenges facing the region.
