As the annual UN climate conference (COP29) takes place in Baku, RFE/RL presents exclusive coverage of environmental issues that are often underreported from regions that are often overlooked.
Russian military forces in and around the Caspian Sea appear to be firing at Ukraine -- with as-yet-unmeasured impacts on the local environment, as well as untold death and destruction on hitting their targets.
Ukrainian officials reported Russian jets firing missiles from the sea in the first days of Moscow’s full-scale invasion in 2022 and have done so repeatedly since.
People living by the Caspian have also reported missile launches, in one case this year posting a video apparently showing a Kalibr cruise-missile launch.
Some locals have said military activity is causing pollution, while some journalists have suggested a link between the launches and die-offs of Caspian seals.
SEE ALSO: Kazakh Experts Sound Alarm Over Mysterious Mass Deaths Of Caspian SealsRussia has not confirmed its use of the Caspian for attacks on Ukraine, but it was not always so coy. In October 2015, official media quoted then-Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu as saying that the Caspian Sea Fleet had hit targets in Syria using Kalibr missiles. There was another such report the following year.
Reported attacks since 2022 have mostly come from the bombers cruising above the Caspian, firing X-55 cruise missiles.
It's possible the Caspian Fleet has fired Kalibr missiles, but the Ukrainian armed forces have said there's no clear evidence.
A video posted by local fishermen in June shows two missiles. The behavior of the tail unit is more like that of a Kalibr than an air-launched cruise missile.
A Russian naval ship fires a missile in the Caspian Sea. (file photo)
But local concerns about the environmental impact of Russia’s Caspian Fleet predate the full-scale invasion. Moscow was already building a new base for the fleet at Kaspiisk, in Daghestan, and in June 2020 held a parade of ships there.
A local man told RFE/RL that the event, which has been held annually ever since, leaves the sea covered with oil and is followed by dead fish piling up on the shore.
"About 30 years ago, the sea was full of life. Not anymore. I swam out to the ships in the summer and saw what was going on. The Caspian Fleet is one of the factors," he said.
'A Terrible Atmosphere'
RFE/RL has been declared an "undesirable organization" by Moscow, so the man’s name cannot be revealed. Doing so could land him in jail.
A local woman, who must also remain anonymous, said she moved to Kaspiisk from the regional capital, Makhachkala, nine years ago, hoping the water would be cleaner.
She said the situation had "changed a lot" in that time and described the impact of the annual naval parades.
“[The ships] are not in port, they’re moored offshore. They burn fuel around the clock, there’s a constant roar of engines, and of course all the emissions go into the sea," she said.
"Then the ships start firing. There's a terrible atmosphere. The smell of burning comes in, even through closed windows...it’s impossible to breathe."
The fleet also holds exercises every September. This year, more than 30 vessels were involved.
The drills take place further out to sea, but our sources told us that fuel deposits and dead fish accumulate on the shore.
Journalists have linked both drills and actual combat activity with pollution and possibly mass seal deaths.
Both Kalibr and X-55 cruise missiles use toxic rocket fuel that may spill into the sea.
But no independent scientific data has been gathered in the Caspian to assess the impact of Russia's military activities on the environment there.