Iran to Set Up Naval Zone in Eastern Caspian Sea

Speaking in a ceremony to mark the National Army Week in the Northern port city of Bandar Anzali on Wednesday, Sayyari emphasized that the navy has increased its forces' level of preparedness.

“In the near future a new naval zone will be established east of the Caspian Sea,” the commander said.

Elsewhere, Sayyari said that after the victory of the Islamic revolution in 1979, Iran achieved the capability to produce the equipment needed for the Navy.

Iranian military officials have repeatedly announced that strong naval presence in the Caspian Sea (the world's largest lake and a resource-rich body of water) is as a way to safeguard national interests and marine resource there.

The maritime and seabed boundaries of the Caspian Sea have yet to be demarcated among the five countries bordering the sea (Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, Russia, Turkmenistan and Iran).

Despite extensive negotiations, the legal status of the Caspian Sea has been unclear since the break-up of the Soviet Union in 1991. Currently, the Caspian Sea's legal regime is based on two agreements signed between Iran and the Soviet Union in 1921 and 1940.

Its final legal status needs to be determined by unanimous agreement among all the littoral states.