Turkmenistan files suit to claim ownership of Caspian oil field

The government of Turkmenistan has filed suit in an international court to press its claim to ownership of an oil field in the middle of the Caspian Sea.
The deposit, discovered by Soviet geologists and originally known as Promezhutochnoye or "Intermediate", is also claimed by Azerbaijan. It is called Serdar by Ashgabat and Kyapaz by Baku. Baku has vigorously contested the Turkmenistani side's efforts to prove its ownership of the field.
The dispute over the deposit began in July of 1997, when SOCAR signed an exploration and development contract with two Russian companies, Rosneft and LUKoil. The Russian government cancelled the deal shortly thereafter, following complaints from the Turkmenistani government.
Ashgabat then announced in June of 1998 that it had awarded the US company Mobil rights to the field through a tender. Baku protested the tender results but declared that it would make no move to develop the property until the ownership dispute was sorted out. Then in early 1999, Turkmenistan revoked Mobil's rights to the concession and stated its intention of putting Kyapaz/Serdar up for sale once again.