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Links between environment and security are an issue of heated debate in the academic community. This report looks at the role of environmental factors in increasing stress over a specific region of Central Asia, the East Caspian Sea shore of Turkmenistan and Kazakhstan.

Traditionally, notion of security has primarily been conceived in terms of neutralizing military threats to the territorial integrity and political independence of the state. However, in recent years, there has been increasing emphasis placed on expanding the traditional concept of security to include non-conventional threats and factors promoting tensions and conflict.

The analysis presented here seeks to identify those environmental, socio-economic and political issues that are profoundly affecting the livelihoods of the populations and populations and could lead to instability and possibly perturbations.

Map of Population by Number and Cities in the Caspian Sea

Produced by Manana Kurtrubadze for the SOE 2018

Map of Oil Spill Accidents Since 2000

Produced by Manana Kurtrubadze for the SOE 2018

Oil Production & Consumption 2006-2016

Produced by Manana Kurtrubadze for the SOE 2018.

Natural Gas Production and Consumption.

Produced by Manana Kurtrubadze for the SOE 2018.

This report analyzes oil and natural gas in the Caspian region, focusing primarily on the littoral (coastal) countries of the Caspian Sea (Russia, Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, Turkmenistan and Iran). A discussion of Uzbekistan is also included. While not a Caspian coastal state, a considerable amount of Uzbekistan's territory, along with its energy resources, lies in the geological Caspian basins.

The combination of foreign investment and rising energy prices allowed the coastal countries to shift from diverting oil extraction for local use to supplying both regional and world oil markets. The ability of countries to export greater volumes of Caspian crude oil and natural gas will depend on how quickly domestic energy demand rises in those countries, how quickly they can build additional export infrastructure to global markets, and whether expensive projects to develop Caspian resources can attract sufficient investment.