Environment and Security: Transforming risks into cooperation

Eastern Caspian

Environment and Security

Introduction and executive summary

through public consultations, joint assess- ments, and information from authoritative international and national sources. The report is a product of a comprehensive process that started with a study of the ex- isting literature and information available on the Caspian region. In particular, ana- lytical work done by the Caspian Environ- mental Programme (CEP) and the eastern Caspian countries from 1998 to 2007 has been extensively used throughout the En- vironment and Security Initiative (ENVSEC) assessment. The CEP is an umbrella pro- gramme of the five littoral states and group of international donor organisations, and is financed by the Global Environment Fa- cility (GEF), the World Bank (WB), the Eu- ropean Union (EU) through its TACIS pro- gramme, the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), and United Nations Development Programme (UNDP). Through its ten thematic centres operated from 1998 to 2002 1 the CEP has extensive monitor- ing and research capacities able to carry out an in-depth analysis of Caspian envi- ronmental issues. The Programme’s main research output is the 2002 Trans-diagnos- tic Analysis (TDA), and its 2007 Revisit. For these reasons the present ENVSEC report

In the past, the notion of security was pri- marily conceived in terms of neutralizing military threats to the territorial integrity and political independence of a state. However, in recent decades, it has been considerably broadened through incorporation of non- conventional threats and factors promoting tension and conflicts. This report considers the role and impact of environmental factors in securing hu- man safety and sustained development of the eastern Caspian Sea region, including the parts of Kazakhstan and Turkmenistan opening onto the Caspian Sea. Furthermore, the analysis presented here introduces a security perspective as it seeks to identify those environmental, socio-economic and political issues that are profoundly affecting the livelihoods of the populations and could lead to social tensions and instability. The environment and security approach aims not only at comprehending and re- solving local and regional environmental problems but also at reducing the potential for tensions and improving cooperation and stability. This also concerns actions targeted at specific issues in the so-called “environ- mental hotspots”, identified and prioritized