Kazakhstan, China and Russia are working on holding trilateral consultations on the joint use of the Irtysh River. This was stated by Russian Minister of Natural Resources and Environment Alexander Kozlov in an interview with Rossiyskaya Gazeta, as reported by Interfax. This was reported by Qazaqyia.kz citing Kursiv Media.
Readiness of the working group
According to Kozlov, a joint Russian-Kazakh working group is already preparing a project for the water management and water-energy use of the Irtysh. Experts have already formed an action plan that will help improve water and environmental security, as well as develop energy infrastructure.
"The parties have defined the area of responsibility of each and prepared a calendar schedule detailing the work, the deadlines for their implementation and the cost of each stage," he noted.
Potential of the trilateral format
The minister added that he sees great potential for developing the project in a trilateral format with China's participation.
"We are currently working on the possibility of holding trilateral consultations at the level of relevant ministries to discuss the prospects for cooperation on the Irtysh," Kozlov clarified.
What happened earlier
Earlier, Kursiv wrote that Kazakhstan and Russia signed a special protocol in which they fixed their intentions to jointly manage the transboundary Irtysh River, as well as to develop tourism and other areas on it. The cooperation plan covers more than 30 areas — from economy and agriculture to sports, digitalization and youth policy.
Thus, the plan prepared by the bilateral working group is seen as a prerequisite for moving to a trilateral dialogue on the use of the Irtysh. China's position remains unknown for now.