Volume 03 Issue 10-2023
27
International Journal Of Law And Criminology
(ISSN
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2771-2214)
VOLUME
03
ISSUE
10
Pages:
27-33
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OCLC
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1121105677
Publisher:
Oscar Publishing Services
Servi
ABSTRACT
In the article, the author analyzes the importance of international legal cooperation of Central Asian states in the field
of ecology and environmental protection in the Aral Sea region, and considers the issue of using the term Central Asia
in research. The author believes that this terminology has deep traditions and its use simplifies the process of scientific
study of the region. There is an argument that that international legal cooperation in this region in the field of ecology
and environmental protection will have a positive impact on the process of maintaining and strengthening mutual
trust and stability in this continent of the earth’s planet.
KEYWORDS
Middle Asia; Central Asia; international legal cooperation; ecology and environmental protection; Aral Sea; Aralkum;
Aral tragedy.
INTRODUCTION
The
deterioration
and
aggravation
of
the
environmental situation due to the drying up of the
Aral Sea at the end of the twentieth century urgently
required the establishment and intensification of
international legal cooperation between the Central
Asian states in the field of ecology and environmental
protection. It should be noted that at present the
problem noted both in science and in the practice of
public international law is not new and has not cooled
down. All states in the region develop and implement
independent, fair environmental domestic and foreign
policies, and also conduct international legal
cooperation at the bilateral, regional and global levels.
THE MAIN RESULTS AND FINDINGS
We believe that the main reason for the current
environmental crisis in the Central Asian region,
associated with the drying up of the Aral Sea, is the
Research Article
THE IMPORTANCE OF INTERNATIONAL LEGAL COOPERATION OF
CENTRAL ASIAN STATES IN THE FIELD OF ECOLOGY AND
ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION IN THE ARAL SEA REGION
Submission Date:
October 13, 2023,
Accepted Date:
October 18, 2023,
Published Date:
October 23, 2023
Crossref doi:
https://doi.org/10.37547/ijlc/Volume03Issue10-06
Amanlik B. Gulimov
Phd, Docent, Doctoral Student University Of World Economy And Diplomacy Tashkent, Uzbekistan
Journal
Website:
https://theusajournals.
com/index.php/ijlc
Copyright:
Original
content from this work
may be used under the
terms of the creative
commons
attributes
4.0 licence.
Volume 03 Issue 10-2023
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03
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Publisher:
Oscar Publishing Services
Servi
unjustified economic activities of administrative
management in the past, and climate change remains
controversial. For climate change on the globe began
to be recognized in the early 90s of the last century -
after the Aral Sea dried up.
As D.I. Garafova, a researcher in this field, rightly notes:
“For the f
irst time, the world community officially
recognized at the highest level the existence of the
problem of anthropogenic impact on climate change
on the Earth at the UN Conference on Environment and
Development, held in 1992 in Rio de Janeiro” [1].
Scientists have proven that climate change is the result
of increased concentrations of greenhouse gases in
the atmosphere. Based on the above opinions of
scientists, it can be assumed that there is no causal
connection between climate change on earth and the
drying out and death of the Aral Sea.
Previously, the term Central Asia and Kazakhstan was
used until 1993. It should be noted that in the
Encyclopedia Britannica there is no distinction
between the concepts of “Central Asia” and “Central
Asia” and both concepts are interpreted as “Central
Asia” [2].
With the collapse of the USSR and the formation of the
Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS), a new
period began in the history of sovereign republics in
what is now Central Asia. On January 4, 1993, a meeting
of the heads of Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan,
Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan took place in Tashkent.
The parties agreed to establish closer cooperation in
the economic and humanitarian fields and decided to
abandon the use of the term “Central Asia and
Kazakhstan” to designate their region, moving to the
concept of “Central Asia” accepted in the West [3].
What served as the basis for the formation of a new
political region in international relations and the entry
into scientific circulation of a new term? The
unexpected collapse of the former union and an
unexpected environmental problem in this continent
of the world - the drying up of the Aral Sea - led to the
unification of the Central Asian states in solving the
environmental problems of the region.
In our opinion, the emergence of this regional
cooperation in modern international relations
consisting of five states can be assessed as a specific
international legal mechanism for solving pressing
problems in the Central Asian region. The universal
international organization - the United Nations, in
paragraph 3 of Article 1 of the Charter, approved the
norm “Implementation of international cooperation in
resolving international problems.” Based on this article
of the Charter of the United Nations, it can be stated
that this norm calls on the states of Central Asia to
unite in solving environmental problems in the region
and to implement international cooperation. Another
important point of the United Nations Charter is the
absence of rules regarding environmental protection in
it.
The absence of norms and provisions in the principles
and purposes of the Charter of the United Nations on
the prevention of environmental crises, conservation
and improvement of natural resources and sustainable
development can be explained as follows: firstly, then
the primary task of the United Nations was considered
to be the maintenance of peace and security, Secondly,
in 1945, humanity and the international community did
not have the problem of realizing the need to protect
the environment at the regional and global level
According to M.A. Sarsenbaev, “before the territories
of these countries were annexed to the Russian state,
they, together with Afghanistan and Persia (Iran),
constituted the region of Central Asia” [5]. We
completely agree with his statement; indeed, at that
Volume 03 Issue 10-2023
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VOLUME
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(2023:
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OCLC
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1121105677
Publisher:
Oscar Publishing Services
Servi
time, the above-mentioned states were also part of
Central Asia, but currently this regional cooperation
includes
only
the
Republic
of
Uzbekistan,
Turkmenistan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and Kazakhstan.
Bura
ev A.I. proposes: “to preserve the terms Central
and Central Asia in their traditional meaning for
Russian science, uniting these two different historical
and geographical areas under the name Inner Asia.”
We do not support his proposal that the term “Cent
ral
Asia” has long been considered public. The transition
to
environmentally
sound
and
sustainable
development is a priority direction for the
development of the Central Asian republics. The states
of the region have ratified and signed a significant
number of international conventions, declarations and
agreements to strengthen environmental protection
activities and improve the ecosystem in the territories
of their countries.
It should be noted that this problem - the Aral tragedy
in international arenas has been raised more than once
by the Republic of Uzbekistan. In fact, the Aral tragedy
and its disastrous consequences have long acquired
planetary status. Speaking from the rostrum of the
General Assembly of the United Nations, the President
of the Republic of Uzbekistan Sh.M. Mirziyoyev has
repeatedly notified the international community and
the whole world about the death of the Aral Sea and
dwelled in detail on the impact of negative
consequences. In particular, he emphasized: “Pointing
to the acute environmental situation and the
intensification of the triple planetary crisis caused by
climate change, loss of biodiversity and environmental
pollution, Central Asia is becoming one of the most
vulnerable regions to climate change. The efforts
undertaken by Uzbekistan to eliminate the
consequences of the Aral tragedy, data on the negative
impact of climate change in our region and the
downward trend in water availability were presented”
[6]. Analyzing the opinion of the President of our
country on the issues of the Aral tragedy, in our opinion
we can give the following assessment:
firstly, he calls for increased attention of the
international community, as well as the inhabitants of
the globe, to issues of the environmental situation on
the globe;
secondly, it reminds us of the negative consequences
of climate change and its impact on the health of
people of the current and future generations;
thirdly, he emphasizes that the main region suffering
from climate change and the drying up of the Aral Sea
is currently the countries of Central Asia;
fourthly, it informs the international community and
the whole world about the active measures taken by
the Republic of Uzbekistan to eliminate and mitigate
the consequences of the Aral tragedy, as well as about
the actions taken to solve environmental problems and
environmental protection not only at the regional but
also at the global level.
We consider it appropriate to dwell on the 78th session
of the United Nations General Assembly, held on
September 19-20, 2023, where all heads of state of
Central Asia spoke. In their speeches, the heads of
state of the region really emphasized the ecological
state of our planet, climate change, the emphasis was
mainly on our region, and the strengthening and
development of regional international cooperation
was noted as a priority, but none of them took the
opportunity to raise The Aral tragedy from the world
platform [7].
When we analyze the speeches of the heads of state of
Central Asia at the 78th session of the United Nations
General Assembly, we can come to the conclusion that
our republic, Uzbekistan, is the initiating state and
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Publisher:
Oscar Publishing Services
Servi
driver in solving environmental problems at the
regional and global levels, as well as the Aral tragedy.
From a demographic point of view, the population of
the Republic of Uzbekistan suffers most from the
situation in the Central Asian states. According to the
latest statistics, if the population of the region is about
80 million, more than 36 million of them belong to the
Republic of Uzbekistan, and the annual increase in the
birth rate is almost a million people [8]. The current
ecological state in the region obliges residents to be
aware of the situation, change their attitude towards
natural resources, and think about the life and health
of the current and future generations. The severity of
the problem of providing the population of the region
with drinking water practically does not decrease and
remains central to the life and health of residents.
It should be noted that in scientific international legal
and political studies there is no single definition and
approach to international legal cooperation of the
Central Asian states in the field of ecology and
environmental protection in the Aral Sea region. When
studying this issue, we should identify the need for
international cooperation, their international legal
basis, as well as their value for further stimulation.
Everyone knows that recently in the scientific political
and legal literature such concepts as “international
cooperation”,
“international
environmental
cooperation”, “international environmental policy”,
“international legal cooperation” and “international
legal cooperation in the field of environmental
protection” and the like.
In our point of view, there are some inaccuracies in
these concepts and terms, since they do not fully cover
the issues of foreign policy and international legal
activities of states in the field of ecology and
environmental protection. Important points should
also be taken into account here: firstly, if we are talking
about cooperation between states, then the number
of participating states must be at least two, secondly,
they are obliged to cooperate to solve a specific
problem, and thirdly, a legal document must be drawn
up document agreement indicating the specific rights
and obligations of the participating states with a
deadline for execution.
According to M.M. Bakhadirov, who studied this
problem from the point of view of political science,
states: “International cooperation in the field of
solving environmental problems, in particular the
problems of the Aral Sea, can be considered in two
aspects: firstly, international cooperation of the state
to solve emerging environmental problems, secondly,
international cooperation to solve these problems is
the policy of
states in this area” [9].
Thus, we assume that we must agree with his
statement about the need to study and consider the
problem in an objective way, dividing it into two
aspects, and also pointing out a specific environmental
problem - the Aral tragedy - linking it with state policy,
but at the same time he does not fully disclose
international cooperation as the activity of states that
closely related to foreign policy and is limited only to
indicating this cooperation as the policy of states in this
area.
The international legal aspect of the issues of ecology
and environmental protection of the regions was
studied in more detail by A.I.Kazannikov. He states that
the regional level is a legal expression of the content of
international legal environmental norms that establish
the boundaries of an ecological region, forms and
methods of cooperation between states, the
procedure for the formation and activities of regional
government bodies, and the organization of
international control over the quality of the natural
environment [10].
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Servi
We support the scientist’s opinion, in which he tries to
specifically and fully reveal the essence of international
legal cooperation at the regional level, but
nevertheless, in our opinion, the author has not paid
enough attention to the fact that currently the
boundaries of environmental problems are not limited
to one region of the earth ball. For example, the drying
up of the Aral Sea and its harmful effects are not
limited only to the Central Asian region, it has become
an environmental problem on a planetary scale. Our
statement is confirmed by a Kazakhstani researcher on
this issue. In particular, she notes: “Environmental
problems are called global because they affect the
interests of all countries, regardless of their
geo
graphical location” [11].
We believe that it is known for everyone, in terms of
geographical location, the Aral Sea is located between
the Republic of Uzbekistan and Kazakhstan.
Previously, the Aral Sea was considered a water div
of two republics. In cases where a water div flows
through the territories of a number of states, then
those parts of rivers or lakes that are located within its
borders are recognized as the property of Kazakhstan
[12]. We do not completely agree with her explanation;
it seems to us that here she differentiated only with the
disclosure of the right to property, the right to use and
manage water bodies. Naturally, when using water,
disagreements and disputes may arise between these
states regarding compliance with the priority of water
use. Unfortunately, if we look back at history, when
these republics became independent states (late 1991),
the sea had almost receded, divided into the large and
small Aral and was considered not a water territory
between the Republics of Uzbekistan and Kazakhstan,
but a land territory.
This does not mean that the environmental problem
that appeared after the drying up of the Aral Sea
affects only the population of both republics. It must
be admitted that having a sea - a div of water on its
territory is very useful for the state and residents,
because
it
simultaneously
creates
various
opportunities (for example: fishing, shipping and
others) for the development of the economy, social
spheres and the like, but the current Aral Sea
(Aralkum), on the contrary, is an obstacle to
development.
According to the statement by Zh.A. Isaeva, she rightly
notes that “there are five Central Asian states in the
Aral Sea basin, and therefore the number of legal
norms regulating environmental relations between
states, incorporated into national legislation, is
currently increasing” [13]. We do agree with her
opinion; indeed, at present, residents of Central Asian
countries are mainly suffering from the harmful effects
of the Aral disaster due to their geographical location.
Also, as N.R.Malysheva believes that there are at least
three approaches to defining environmental problems
as regional as in the folowing:
1) Problems that have arisen in a particular region, e.g.
having a regional (local) source in their origins;
2) Problems experienced by a specific region. These
problems can be generated by a whole complex of
factors and are almost never associated with the
activity of one problem, an environmental source;
3) Problems classified as regional in accordance with
the legal level of their solution.
These problems vary both temporally and spatially,
which is associated with differences in legislative
priorities, the severity of certain environmental
problems perceived in the system of legislative
technology [14]. We fully support the opinion of N.R.
Malysheva, since she, with a scrupulous approach, tries
to give a concept to regionalism, revealing all its parts.
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Servi
Therefore, overcoming the negative and harmful
consequences of the Aral tragedy should be
considered
a
major
part
of
strengthening
environmental security throughout the territory of the
Central Asian states [15]. It seems to us that a more
capacious and correct definition is that international
legal cooperation of the Central Asian states in the field
of ecology and environmental protection in the Aral
Sea region represents a joint foreign policy activity of
the republics of the region based on the norms and
principles of modern international law, aimed at
mitigating the harmful actions (tragedies) of the Aral
Sea.
All inhabitants of the planet should understand that
the death of the Aral Sea is an assessment and result
without the responsibility of humanity, as well as the
international community, to nature. It is also important
to note that the Aral tragedy is a mistake of the former
administrative management for the irrational
distribution and use of water resources. Despite the
intensification of measures taken by the international
community on this problem, water shortage in the
world every day becomes a hot topic in the world, and
environmental problems continue to grow.
Taking into account the environmental situation that
has developed in the Central Asian region as a result of
the drying up of the Aral Sea and active assistance from
the international community to mitigate the harmful
effects of the Aral tragedy, we can confidently say that
international legal cooperation in this region in the
field of ecology and environmental protection will have
a positive impact on the process of maintaining and
strengthening mutual trust and stability in this
continent of the earth's planet.
Thus, we could conclude that international legal
cooperation in the Central Asian region in the field of
ecology and environmental protection should
contribute to the fact that humanity should not
become an example of the fact that it can be a pest of
the planet, depleting resources, but a shining example
of improving and conservation of existing natural
resources for present and future generations. In turn,
the Central Asian region should become the driving
continent of the planet in the field of ecology and
environmental protection. To summarize, we need to
focus on the following:
firstly, it is a fact that the Aral Sea has moved away
from us, but life continues in the region; to ensure the
right to human life, it is necessary to continue the
process of mitigating harmful actions;
secondly, to prevent similar situations, it is necessary
to show the whole world more of the dried-up territory
of the Aral Sea, both from the Republic of Uzbekistan
and from the Republic of Kazakhstan, and share the
harmful consequences with everyone for a lesson in
the face of nature;
thirdly, the parliaments of the countries in the region
should reconsider issues of unifying the legislation of
countries on the development of ecotourism.
However, at the same time, it should be noted that this
proposal will undoubtedly give a positive assessment
and will be able to make tourists aware of what poor
management, distribution and use of water resources
on the globe can lead to.
CONCLUSION
Thus, taking into account the current environmental
situation as a result of the destruction of the Aral Sea
in the Central Asian region and the interest of the
international community in the gradual restoration of
a favorable state of the environment, the development
of international legal cooperation in the field of
ecology and environmental protection can be
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Publisher:
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Servi
considered as a new emerging independent institution
of international public law in the field of ecology and
environmental protection. For humanity and the
international community, the death of the Aral Sea
should serve as a regional model for preventing similar
environmental crises, and Central Asian International
Legal Cooperation should become a reformer in this
activity.
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