RUSSIA, U.S.A. DISCUSS CASPIAN ISSUES








MOSCOW, MARCH 11, 2001 /FROM A RIA NOVOSTI CORRESPONDENT/ -- Viktor Kalyuzhnyi, Russian presidential special envoy to the Caspian region, met Elizabeth Johns, his U.S. counterpart, in Moscow.


	According to the Russian foreign ministry, the U.S. presidential and Secretary of State adviser for the Caspian problem unveiled approaches of the new U.S. administration to Caspian issues. In return, Viktor Kalyuzhnyi briefed the U.S. delegation on the course of talks aimed to draft a new legal status of the Caspian Sea.


	The meeting highlighted the environmental situation in the Caspian region and discussed possibilities of Russia-U.S. cooperation in that sphere.


	The sides agreed to continue the exchange of opinions with a view to setting Russian-American coordination in settling Caspian issues.