It's difficult to say, as the final text of the deal is yet to be published. sea) and by sharing the seabed in territorial areas, modelled on a lake. For 20 years Azerbaijan, Iran, Kazakhstan, Russia and Turkmenistan, which surround it, have disagreed over whether it is a lake or a sea. Sign up to our free daily newsletter, The Economist today, Published since September 1843 to take part in “a severe contest between intelligence, which presses forward, and an unworthy, timid ignorance obstructing our progress.”. The Caspian Sea, the world’s largest enclosed, inland body of water, with an area of 386,400 square kilometers and a salinity of 1.2% concentration, is located between Europe and Asia. But do not let this name fool you. It cites environmental concerns, but may be rather more motivated by a desire to maintain its market dominance. Around 500 plant and 850 animal species thrive in the Caspian Sea's habitats. Lake connotes fresh (drinkable) water. The eastern shores of the lake experience higher temperatures than elsewhere, reaching up to a maximum of 44° Celsius in the summers. Arctic seals, Mediterranean seals, and the endemic Caspian seal, fishes like sturgeon, pike, and herring, and crabs, clams, and barnacles as well, all inhabit the waters of the Caspian Sea. It is often listed as the world's largest lake, though it is not a freshwater one. The surface is to be treated as a sea, with states granted jurisdiction over 15 nautical miles of water from their coasts and fishing rights over an additional ten miles. But many hydrocarbon deposits in the south of the Caspian are disputed by Azerbaijan, Iran and Turkmenistan. Discoveries in the Huto cave near the town of Behshahr in Iran point to the existence of a human populationin the area 75,000 years ago. In fact, a series of bi-lateral treaties between the Soviet Union and Iran identified the Caspian Sea as a lake, the resources of which should be divided equally between them.2 If the Caspian Sea is in fact a large salty lake under the jurisdiction of its littoral states, or of Russia and Iran alone, then the United Nations and international law have no jurisdiction over its waters. However, territorial disputes centered around the sharing of Caspian Sea and its resources among the bordering nations makes it nearly impossible to protect the sea from such dire environmental threats. Five countries border the Caspian Sea. It became a lake with no access to the sea some 5.5 million years ago. The Caspian is also a famous vacationing spot for the people of countries bordering it, as well tourists from other parts of the globe. It became landlocked about 5.5 million years ago due to tectonic uplift and a fall in sea level. Answers (2) Kavan Today, 02:39. Seas are governed by the UN’s Law of the Sea. A tectonic uplift and a fall in sea level caused it to became landlocked approximately 5.5 million years ago. By Oishimaya Sen Nag on March 1 2018 in Environment. The Caspian is the largest salt lake in the world, but that has not always been true. In 1980, a dam was built at the mouth of the Kara-Bogaz-Gol to control wa… If it is classified as a lake, then each of the five countries bordering it will be sharing one-fifth of the entire revenue generated by exploiting the natural resources of the lake. Kukral refers to it as a lake, as do many scholars. The Caspian Sea is the world's largest inland body of water, variously classed as the world's largest lake or a full-fledged sea. Much of the confusion comes because there are no internationally agreed-upon definitions for seas or lakes. It's the biggest lake in Europe. The volume is 78,200 cubic km. Although the number of species is relatively low for a body of water of that size, many of them are endemic (i.e., found only there). Lake Khantayskoye. It has a salinityof appr… Hope this helps ;) The convention most clearly benefits Russia in the short term. Namely, these are Russia and Azerbaijan to the northwest and west, respectively, Kazakhstanand Turkmenistan to the northeast and southeast, respectively, and Iran to the south. … Approximately 850 animal species and more than 500 plant species are represented in the Caspian. Cargo like petroleum, lumber, cereal grains, and sulfates are also transported via the Caspian Sea waterway between the countries lying across and around the sea. The Caspian Sea basin, especially its northeastern parts, is one of the most fossil fuel-enriched areas of the world in terms of its presence of oil and natural gas reserves. Oil is extracted both from wells drilled on land and those offshore into the seabed. The vast natural resources of the region allowed such ancient civilizations to flourish in the region. As per geological estimates, the Caspian Sea was formed about 30 million years ago, and attained its current landlocked status some 5.5 million years back. Answer: I think it might be (B) B. Despite its name, it determines that the Caspian is neither lake nor sea. The Caspian Sea is about as strange as a body of water gets. The Iranian president, Hassan Rouhani, made clear that more agreements are required to divide the seabed into territorial zones. In terms of fish for meat, four-fifths of the global sturgeon catch involves sturgeons landed from the Caspian Sea. But Caspian Sea (85' below Sea level) and Dead Sea (1187' below Sea level) are very Salty. It covers 371,000 km (143,000 sq mi) (excluding the highly saline lagoon of Garabogazköl) and a volume of 78,200 km (19,000 cu mi). In the north, where the mighty river Volga washes into it, it is virtually fresh water (salinity increases the further south you go). It is east of the Caucasus, west of the broad steppe of Central Asia, south of the fertile plains of Southern Russia in Eastern Europe, and north of the mountainous Iranian Plateau of Western Asia. Seas are often defined by connection to the ocean or another sea via salt water, which the Caspian Sea is not. Currently, the absence of an agreement on the status of the Caspian Sea continues to create confusion and clashes between countries like Iran and Azerbaijan, as well as between Azerbaijan and Turkmenistan, and heavy losses to life and property are incurred quite frequently as tensions escalate into violence and sabotage. Under such circumstances, Iran, with only 13% of the Caspian's shoreline, would suffer heavy losses. It is unclear if the other Caspian states are still able to prevent their construction by citing environmental concerns. Explanation: Caspian sea is not actually a sea but a lake. When one looks at a map, they will see in the heart of Eurasia the largest inlet of water in the world: the Caspian Sea. A lake or sea? Currently, a large debate concerning the classification of the Caspian Sea is the subject of much geopolitical talk. The distinction is not merely semantic, but has economic, military and political implications. Russia has long opposed the pipeline. There is a serious debate as to whether the Caspian is legally a lake or a sea - and how this debate is resolved could have … An endorheic basin, it is between Europe and Asia. The Volga River drains into the Arctic Ocean. Red sea: A sea that that surrounds the Horn of Africa. Because of this, minerals build up in the water as it evaporates and the lake usually becomes saline. The Caspian basin and surrounding area are rich in hydrocarbons, which include 48bn barrels of oil and over 8 trillion cubic metres of gas, according to the US Energy Information Administration. 0. However, if it was classified as a sea, then countries would share its bounties based on the length of the coastline of each country along the Caspian Sea. By the 16th Century, the presence of rich oil and natural gas resources in the area around Caspian Sea were already known to the Europeans, though this had less significance in the age before the internal combustion engine. The Caspian Sea is the world's largest inland sea. A lake is smaller in size and shallower in depth than a sea. The sea has a potential deposit of oil and natural gas capable of generating nearly 79 billion barrels of oil and 7 trillion cubic meters of natural gas. The convention’s benefits for the other Caspian states are more ambiguous. This division of the spoils is left to countries to agree on a bilateral basis. But the seabed and its lucrative mineral deposits are not allocated in precise form. Oil and natural gas mining and export greatly benefit the economies of the countries bordering the Caspian Sea. Caspian Sea - Caspian Sea - Marine life: About 850 animal and more than 500 plant species live in the Caspian. Moreover, the eastern shore of the Caspian Sea experiences a desert climate. The surface and bed are allotted, nearer to shore, according to the length of relevant coastline. The pre-Caspian Sea are Azerbaijan, Russia, Kazakhstan, Turkmenistan and Iran. The resulting Convention on the Legal Status of the Caspian Sea was a compromise. Five countries — Russia, Kazakhstan, Turkmenistan, Iran and Azerbaijan — border the inland sea. The Caspian’s surface may be closer to a sea, but the fate of the subsoil remains a work in progress. Iran, which has a short Caspian coast, still prefers this idea. The surface is … Such facts are explained further down in this article. Tiny algae and diatoms constitute a huge percentage of the biomass of the sea. Though apparently this classification does not appear to be anything but a geographical correction, there is a much deeper implication for the definition of the status of the Caspian Sea, which can significantly impact the economy of the countries bordering it. mi. In the 1960s and 1970s, its water level dropped considerably, as many of its waters were used for irrigation and other activities. Namely, these are Russia and Azerbaijan to the northwest and west, respectively, Kazakhstan and Turkmenistan to the northeast and southeast, respectively, and Iran to the south. But do not let this name fool you. A recent convention ended up hedging its bets. The Caucasus Mountains rise to the west of … When Iran and the USSR were the only two countries to border the Caspian, a series of bilateral treaties identified it as a lake that they divided equally. While the northern parts experience a moderate continental climate, a subtropical climate prevails in the southern parts. Copyright © The Economist Newspaper Limited 2020. The Caspian Sea is an endorheic, or terminal lake, meaning that its water does not reach the ocean. A lake is an inland body of (usually) fresh water, whereas a sea is saltwater and (usually) open to the ocean. Here, the classification of the Caspian Sea as a lake or as a sea becomes vitally significant. The Caspian Sea or Mazandaran Sea is a landlocked sea between Asia and Europe (European Russia). The aircraft was not destroyed, but abandoned in the Caspian Sea, being visible in 2020. The Caspian Sea is the largest lake on the Earth. After the fall of the Soviet Union, however, the successor countries changed their tune and began calling it a sea. The Caspian Sea is a landlocked body of water between Europe and Asia. ), and therefore has characteristics common to both seas and lakes. WHAT is the Caspian? Like many lakes, it does not feed into an ocean, but it is sea-like in its size and depth. The density rules out any marine life like fishes and hence the name 'Dead Sea'. Though the Caspian is called a sea, it is a lake. Endorheic lakes are usually more sensitive to pollution than waterbodies that drain to the ocean. However, the Iranian shore is more saline, as there is little flow coming from its catchment basin. Besides oil and natural gas resources, the Caspian Sea is also famous for its sturgeon fish populations. On August 12th the leaders of the five Caspian countries met in the Kazakh city of Aqtau to determine the water’s status. The feasibility of trans-Caspian pipelines, taking oil from Kazakhstan and gas from Turkmenistan to Azerbaijan, was reaffirmed, though these were technically already permissible under international law. On the other hand, the Caspian also has the defining characteristics of a lake: it is land-locked and has no outflowing rivers. The history of the Caspian Sea, such as the fact that it was linked to the Sea of Azov and the Black Sea sometime back in the geological time scale and currently still possesses brackish water in some parts and produces wave-like features, leads some to end up classifying it as a sea. Though environmental and ecological issues like overfishing, coastal desertification, water pollution from oil and natural gas drilling and industrial effluents, and sea-level fluctuations due to climate change continue to threaten the Caspian Sea, the threats from these sources can only be addressed if the countries sharing its water cooperate with one another to solve such issues. The surrounding countries already exploit the reserves close to their coasts, where jurisdiction is the same regardless of whether the Caspian is a lake or a sea. Often regarded as the largest lake in the world, the Caspian Sea is located between the continents of Asia and Europe. The convention also permits the construction of pipelines, which only require the approval of the countries whose seabed they cross, subject to environmental provisions, and forbids non-Caspian countries from deploying military vessels in the water. On the other hand, the present truths that the Caspian Sea is completely landlocked on all sides and that it has freshwater towards its northern parts, especially near the mouth of the Volga River, deems it suitable to classify the Caspian Sea as a lake. It is called a sea and not a lake because when the Ancient Romans arrived there, they discovered that the water was salty (about a third as salty as regular seawater); they named the sea after the Caspian tribe that lived there. All rights reserved. All maps, graphics, flags, photos and original descriptions © 2020 worldatlas.com, The Sea of Galilee Is a Freshwater Lake and Not a Sea. Despite its name, the Caspian Sea can be called either a lake or a sea. Mediterranean: A sea that that surrounds North East Africa. As another sea in Russia, Caspian Sea have gas and oil field which that so rich and … The term 'sea' is kind of inconsistently used. The sea almost dried up during warm and dry periods.In its northern section where the Volga River drains into the Caspian Sea, it is a freshwater lake. Five countries border the Caspian Sea. Despite its name, it determines that the Caspian is neither lake nor sea. Endorheic basins like the Caspian Sea, Dead Sea, Aral Sea, Salton Sea, etc which have 'sea' in their common names, are all technically lakes because they are internally drained and completely surrounded by land. The Caspian Sea is being debated because some countries call it a lake and others call it a sea. A lake or sea? water density of the latter sea is marginally more than sea water even, so that one can float in it without drowning. The Caspian Sea, like the Aral Sea, Black Sea, and Lake Urmia, is a remnant of the ancient Paratethys Sea. In addition, Turkmenistan, with the world’s fourth-largest gas reserves, hopes to construct a Trans-Caspian Pipeline to export gas to Europe. Lakes’ surfaces and beds are divided up equally by bordering countries. It is the largest enclosed body of water on the planet. During the Soviet era the Caspian Sea was considered a lake. The countries bordering the sea are in constant competition with each other, whether that be to access the sea for fishing, capturing its oil and natural gas resources, for using its waterways to connect to international waters, or otherwise. These Caspian sturgeons' eggs are use to make some of the finest varieties of the global delicacy known as caviar. Will antibody therapies help control covid-19. In 1720 and again in 1731, the first major scientific reports on the sea were published. C. Most of Russia is rugged and mountainous. The Caspian Sea is the world's largest lake. D. Caspian Sea. In fact, a series of bi-lateral treaties between the Soviet Union and Iran identified the Caspian Sea as a lake, the resources of which should be divided equally between them.2 If the Caspian Sea is in fact a large salty lake under the jurisdiction of its littoral states, or of Russia and Iran alone, then the United Nations and international law have no jurisdiction over its waters. D. The Ural Mountains form a boundary between Russia and China. The Caspian's strategic importance lies in its abundance of energy resources. The early 20th Century expeditions led by Russian zoologist Nikolai M. Knipovich, led to a through in the elucidation of many multidisciplinary aspects concerning the Caspian Sea. Its area is 371,000 square km. After more than three decades, the aircraft was moved in 2020 to Derbent, with plans to make it the star of Derbent's planned Patriot Park, a military museum and theme park that will display a variety of Soviet and Russian military equipment. The Caspian Sea, the world’s largest enclosed, inland body of water, with an area of 386,400 square kilometers and a salinity of 1.2% concentration, is located between Europe and Asia. The convention also serves as a show of Russo-Iranian co-operation in the face of American sanctions, and lets Russia reassert its ties to Caspian states in the context of rising Chinese influence in the region. Resources. It is the world's largest inland body of water, with a surface area of 371,000 km² (143,000 sq. But a resolution of the disputed area in the southern Caspian remains elusive. Kazakhstan, which has the longest shore on the Caspian, is among the countries that prefer to call it a sea. The Caspian Sea is a remnant of the ancient Paratethys Sea, like the Black Sea, the Aral Sea, Lake Urmia and Lake Oroumieh. Russia secures the dominance of its Caspian Sea fleet, from which it has launched missiles at targets in Syria. Major cities of ancient civilizations that grew up along the shores of the Caspian Sea included Hyrcania, Atil, and Tamisheh. Though average summer temperatures from north to south range between 24 and 26° Celsius, average winter temperatures exhibit extremes in the northern part, being around −10° Celsius, while in the south they remain around a mild 10° Celsius. It has historically been considered a sea because of its size and its saline water, but it embodies many characteristics of lakes. The resulting Convention on the Legal Status of the Caspian Sea was a compromise. Caspian Sea The Caspian Sea is also an endorheic basin and not connected to the oceans of the world. Maximum depth - 1,378 ft. Average depth - 243 ft. Currently, a large debate co… Kazakhstan will benefit from a firmer framework for the jurisdiction of its offshore Kashagan oil field, but that is already in operation. When one looks at a map, they will see in the heart of Eurasia the largest inlet of water in the world: the Caspian Sea. The vastness of the Caspian Sea is reflected in the climatic differences seen in different parts of the sea. According to historians and geographers it is considered that the sea is approximately 30 million years old. Who wins and who loses? Blue-green algae (cyanobacteria) and diatoms constitute the greatest biomass concentrations, and there are several species of red and brown algae. The first humans inhabited this region as far back as 75,000 years ago. Russian explorations and expeditions to the inland sea continued at a rapid pace thereafter until the break up and collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991. 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