Aral Sea basin--rumors, realities, prospects

The Aral Sea basin has been for many years appearing in global and former Soviet mass media as an example of the rapacious attitude to nature on the part of socialist society. For the last 10 years Central Asia has been subsisting and surviving under conditions where the regional countries closely interact with the whole world community. Though the Aral Sea Program, which was laid down at the Paris meeting in 1994, remained generally unfulfilled, cooperation between Central Asian states as to joint water resources management has not only managed to survive but continues to develop. New rumors still continue to stigmatize the Aral Sea basin by overstressing current controversies that are allegedly ready to develop into a “war for water” in the region. As a matter of fact cooperation between the countries carried out by water management agencies and the Interstate Commission for Water Coordination (ICWC), which celebrated its tenth jubilee in February 2002, has been progressing regardless of complexities and differences in the environmental, social, political and natural situation in the countries and gaps between their levels of development. This cooperation enjoys the confidence of their future success, giving objective appraisal of achievements and drawbacks as well as ways to survive. Fair assessments and realistic approaches are needed on the part of those who are earnestly willing to help the region, and at the very least there should be noninterference and silence on the part of those who are not interested. Copyright © 2003 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. RÉSUMÉ Depuis plusieurs années la presse internationale et de l'ex Union Soviétique dénonce l'exploitation irrationnelle du bassin de la Mer d'Aral par la société soviétique. L'Asie Centrale bénéficie depuis ces dix dernières années d'une coopération soutenue par la communauté internationale. Malgré l'inachèvement du programme de sauvetage de la Mer d'Arale, proposé lors de la réunion de Paris en 1994, les gouvernements de l'Asie Centrale continuent de développer leur coopération en matière de gestion des ressources en eau. Des rumeurs ajoutent à la problématique une véritable controverse, aboutissent à une perspective éventuelle de 〈〈 guerre de l'eau 〉〉 dans la région. La coopération facile entre les états, dirigée par les agences responsables des ressources en eau et par la Commission Internationale de Coordination Hydraulique (qui a fêté cette année, au mois de février, son 10e anniversaire) progressé ma