Azerbaijan is calling for closer regional cooperation with Central Asian neighbors to confront the escalating climate crisis in the Caspian Sea, said Mukhtar Babayev, Azerbaijan’s presidential climate envoy and COP29 President, in an interview with The Times of Central Asia.

Babayev stressed that falling water levels in the Caspian Sea, now at their lowest point since the 19th century, represent a growing threat to biodiversity, infrastructure, and economic stability in the region. He pointed to shared environmental pressures in the South Caucasus and Central Asia, including water scarcity and desertification, which are being worsened by climate change and declining river flows.

“The drying of the Caspian Sea is one of the central challenges,” Babayev said. “At the recent Nevsky International Environmental Congress, Azerbaijan proposed a summit to address this crisis.”

Technology-Driven Solutions and AI Integration

Highlighting the role of innovation, Babayev said Azerbaijan has incorporated artificial intelligence into its national climate programs to improve forecasting and scenario modeling. He called for joint scientific capacity-building and regional data-sharing as crucial first steps toward a coordinated environmental strategy.

“Artificial intelligence can improve forecasting and scenario modeling,” Babayev noted. “Regional actions have global implications, and the Caspian experience could shape future international climate policies.”

Call for Political Unity and River Restoration

Babayev identified the Kura, Ural, Terek, Samur, and Volga Rivers as essential lifelines for the Caspian ecosystem, warning that their reduced flow has exacerbated ecological decline. He emphasized that the climate crisis is particularly acute in Kazakhstan’s Atyrau and Aktau regions, where agriculture, marine energy, and port operations are increasingly affected.

He cautioned that, in the absence of political cooperation, water scarcity could trigger regional competition, underscoring the need for a unified political approach among Caspian littoral states to prevent tensions and coordinate environmental restoration.

“The Aral Sea offers a stark precedent; its desiccation triggered not only environmental degradation but also social upheaval,” he said. “Our focus now must be on mitigation and adaptation.”

Toward a Caspian Climate Summit

As president of the upcoming UN Climate Change Conference (COP29) to be held in Baku, Babayev’s statements reflect Azerbaijan’s broader ambition to lead regional climate diplomacy. The proposed Caspian Summit would bring together states most directly affected by the crisis to agree on actionable measures to preserve one of the world’s largest inland bodies of water.

With rising climate pressures, Azerbaijan’s push for regional unity may become a central theme of COP29, bridging local challenges with the global climate agenda.

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