Correlation between international and national law rules in the Russian Federation concerning to environmental protection of the Caspian Sea

Abstract

The adoption of the 2018 Convention on the Legal Status of the Caspian Sea is of great importance for the protection of the Caspian environment, as it establishes a clear legal status of the Caspian Sea. At the same time, the provisions of the Convention of 2018 and the Framework Convention for the Protection of the Marine Environment of the Caspian Sea of 2003 (Tehran Convention) require further addition, primarily in the form of additional protocols to the Tehran Convention. In addition, the development of international legal norms should facilitate the harmonization of applicable national legislation in the Caspian States. To study the relationship between international legal norms on environmental protection of the Caspian Sea and Russian national legislation and the possibility of supplementing the international legal regime with domestic norms. Methods: methods of analysis and synthesis, empirical methods of comparison, description, interpretation; legal-dogmatic and method of interpretation of legal norms. Results: The author shows that while the provisions of the Tehran Convention, its protocols and the applicable legal acts of the Russian Federation generally comply, the national legislation establishes more detailed approaches to environmental protection of the Caspian region in certain aspects. In conclusion, the legislation of the Russian Federation may help to fill a number of gaps in regional international legal regulation of the Caspian environmental protection. In particular, it is relevant in terms of legal protection from oil spill damage, as well as in the area of river runoff regulation (within the context of the basin approach to the management of the Caspian Sea resources).