Cord Byrd: “American involvement and interests in the Caspian Sea Region, have been increasing recently. While this region is new on…”

“American involvement and interests in the Caspian Sea Region, have been increasing recently. While this region is new on the political map of American policy-makers, in that the newly-sovereign nations there were formerly Republics under the rule of the Soviet Union, they represent very substantial new opportunities for the United States. From the point of view of energy reserves, the tremendous hydrocarbon resources which are available for development in the region are of world-class potential. The extent of the resources which apparently exist, particularly in Kazakstan, Azerbaijan, and Turkmenistan could well serve as a long-term alternative to Western dependence on vulnerable supplies of Persian gulf oil. The proper development of the energy resources of the Caspian Sea region should also provide an invaluable impetus to the economic development of all the nations of the region. As a result of this growing potential, the Foreign Operations Appropriations Act for FY 1997 included a provision that I proposed for the Administration to develop a plan of action for the United States government to assist and accelerate the earliest possible development and shipment of oil from the Caspian Sea region to the United States and other Western markets.”