The width of the Kazakhstani sea belt in the Caspian Sea will be 15 nautical miles. Kazakhstani fishermen will be allowed to sail into the inland and territorial waters at any time of day or night.
These innovations are stated in the Law “On Making Amendments and Additions to Some Legislative Acts of the Republic of Kazakhstan on Issues Relating to the Implementation of Activities in the Caspian Sea” passed today by senators.
In the words of the Chairman of the Senate Maulen Ashimbayev, the Law will ensure economic activities and the legal basis for the protection of state borders in the Caspian Sea. The document intends to harmonize the national legislation with the Convention on the Legal Status of the Caspian Sea, adopted at the initiative of the First President - Elbasy. It was signed by the leaders of the Caspian states in Aktau in 2018.
“In compliance with the Convention, the laws are introduced norms on territorial waters, the width of which is 15 nautical miles. At that, the state border of the country will pass along their outer limit. There are also amendments on the fishing zone of Kazakhstan, which will be 10 nautical miles, as measured from the state border. The state has the exclusive right for fishing of aquatic biological resources within these limits. The adopted Law establishes the legal basis for the effective protection of state borders, ensuring the national security and exercising the economic interests of the country in the Caspian Sea. The Law will also promote the conservation of aquatic biological resources. There is no doubt that the adopted norms meet our national interests,” the Speaker of the House said.
These legal regulations will be enacted with the entry into force of the Convention itself, the ratification of which has not yet been completed in the Islamic Republic of Iran.
Apart from that, the Law “On Making Amendments and Additions to Some Legislative Acts of the Republic of Kazakhstan on Science” was approved by senators in the first reading. The amendments are aimed at increasing the transparency in funding of research work and the commercialization of research findings.
