COMPETITION IN THE CASPIAN REGION AFTER SOVIET PERIOD ( SOVYET SONRASI D NEMDE HAZAR EVRES NDE YA ANAN REKABET )

The Caspian Sea Region is rich for its oil and natural gas resources. According to the travelers records the Region has oil resources beginning from 13th century. Oil was used for heating at that time. At the end of 19th century oil began to gain importance. However, by the end of the World War I the Region was closed to the outer world. Upon collapse of the Soviets, the Caspian Region energy resources gained prominence again. The Region’s energy reserves started to be seen as alternative to the Middle East’s oil resources.Upon collapse of the Soviet Russia, new competitions took place in the Caspian Region. The energy resources in the Caspian Region became targets of the global powers such as EU, USA and China. In this competition, local actors such as Turkey, Russia, and Iran took their place too. On the other hand, in the midst of their hope for prosperity, Turkish republics, that have the greatest portion of the energy resources of the sea, found themselves in a global competition. Problems such as legal status of the Caspian Sea, environmental issues, and the routes of energy transmission lines have demonstrated that fate of the Caspian Region is too important to be left to the Turkish republics.