Declaration Of The Iranian People On Iran's Sovereign Rights In The Caspian Sea
The Issue
Declaration of Non-Consent, Preservation of National Rights, and Notice to the International Community
14 August 2026
The PDF version in both English and Persian can be found on this link: PDF Version
نسخۀ پیدیاف به دو زبان انگلیسی و پارسی در این لینک موجود است: نسخۀ پیدیاف
Quick Summary
This Declaration upholds the Iranian people's sovereign rights in the Caspian Sea and rejects any relinquishment or reduction of those rights without their free and democratic consent. It records our non-consent to decisions made by the Islamic Republic and calls for Iran's Caspian rights to be determined by the Iranian people through a free and fair democratic process.
I. PREAMBLE
The Caspian Sea is an inseparable part of Iran's history, geography, national identity, security, and economic future.
Before the dissolution of the Soviet Union in 1991, Iran and the Soviet Union were the two littoral states of the Caspian Sea, operating under a bilateral treaty regime that recognized important principles of equality and reciprocal rights. The Caspian was historically understood in Iran as a shared Iranian-Soviet sea, with an equal 50–50 understanding of the rights of the two littoral states. [1][2]
Following the dissolution of the Soviet Union, four newly independent states—Russia, Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, and Turkmenistan—became littoral states of the Caspian. No comprehensive five-state delimitation of the seabed and subsoil has been established on the basis of the Iranian people's consent. Iran has maintained its own historical and legal positions concerning the division of the Caspian and its resources. [1][3]
Today, decisions concerning Iran's rights in the Caspian Sea are being made by a regime that does not derive its authority from the freely expressed will of the Iranian people.
We, the undersigned citizens of Iran, therefore issue this Declaration to affirm our position, to place the international community and the Caspian littoral states on formal notice, and to preserve the rights and claims of the Iranian nation for the present and future.
II. THE IRANIAN PEOPLE AND NATIONAL SOVEREIGNTY
The sovereignty and national resources of Iran belong to the Iranian nation.
The regime presently exercising power in Iran must not be equated with the Iranian people themselves.
The Iranian people have not been afforded a free and democratic process through which they may determine whether Iran's sovereign rights in the Caspian Sea should be relinquished, diminished, transferred, or permanently settled.
The Islamic Republic's electoral system does not provide a genuinely open democratic choice over the country's political future. Candidates are subject to institutional vetting and disqualification, while political competition is restricted by the constitutional and political structure of the Islamic Republic. Recent elections have also witnessed historically low participation; as an example, turnout in the March 2024 parliamentary election was announced as approximately 41 percent [4][5], with experts predicting even lower rates given the unfair and unmonitored reality of elections under Islamic Republic. [6]
The absence of popular consent has also been repeatedly demonstrated through mass movements demanding fundamental political change, including the 2009 Green Movement, the nationwide protests of 2017–18, the November 2019 uprising, the 2022 Mahsa Amini uprising, and the massive, nationwide protests that began in late 2025 and continued into 2026. [7-12]
These repeated expressions of public opposition demonstrate that the legitimacy of the existing political order has been persistently and publicly contested by large segments of the Iranian population. The mass killing of protesters in January 2026 and the brutal suppression of dissent further exposed the regime's lack of popular legitimacy. In January 2026, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz stated that the Iranian “Mullah regime” had “no legitimacy” to remain in power. [13]
The Iranian nation has therefore neither authorized nor been given a genuine democratic mechanism to authorize the permanent relinquishment of its territorial or sovereign rights.
III. IRAN'S HISTORICAL POSITION IN THE CASPIAN SEA
During the Pahlavi era, Iran and the Soviet Union were the two states bordering the Caspian Sea.
The Treaty of Friendship of 1921 and subsequent agreements governing commerce and navigation established important principles of equality and reciprocal rights between Iran and the Soviet Union concerning navigation and the use of the Caspian. The 1940 Treaty of Commerce and Navigation continued this framework. [1][2]
The historical regime did not establish a modern cartographic boundary assigning precisely 50 percent of the Caspian surface or seabed to Iran. Rather, Iran and the Soviet Union operated under a bilateral regime of equal and reciprocal rights, and the 1940 diplomatic exchange referred to the Caspian as an “Iran and Soviet sea.” This formed the basis for the longstanding Iranian understanding of the Caspian as a jointly shared sea, commonly expressed as an equal 50–50 share. [1]
The dissolution of the Soviet Union fundamentally changed the political geography of the Caspian. The emergence of four new littoral states created the need for a new multilateral framework and for agreement on the delimitation of the seabed and subsoil.
Iran did not, by that transformation alone, consent to abandon its historical rights or accept a particular new percentage of the Caspian.
The Iranian people have not authorized the relinquishment of the historical position, nor have they authorized acceptance of any alternative allocation. Any decision to depart from Iran's historical position—including acceptance of an equal division among the five littoral states or any other allocation—must be made through a legitimate democratic government and with the free and direct consent of the Iranian people.
IV. THE 2018 CONVENTION ON THE LEGAL STATUS OF THE CASPIAN SEA
On 12 August 2018, Iran, Russia, Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, and Turkmenistan signed the Convention on the Legal Status of the Caspian Sea. [3]
The Convention establishes a framework governing the Caspian Sea, including territorial waters, fishing zones, navigation, security, environmental protection, and the exploitation of seabed and subsoil resources.
The Convention does not itself assign Iran a fixed percentage of the Caspian seabed or subsoil. Article 8 provides that delimitation of the seabed and subsoil into sectors is to be effected by agreement between states with adjacent and opposite coasts, taking into account generally recognized principles and norms of international law. [3][14][15]
Figures of approximately 11–13 percent have nevertheless been reported as a possible Iranian share under certain approaches to seabed delimitation. [16][17] We reject any characterization of 11–13 percent as an established, accepted, or legitimate share of Iran's Caspian rights. This figure is not assigned to Iran by the 2018 Convention itself, and Iran has not consented through the Convention to such an allocation. The Convention also contains provisions concerning its entry into force and registration. [18][19]
More broadly, the Iranian people do not consent to any particular allocation of Iran's Caspian rights—whether 11–13 percent, 20 percent, 50 percent, an equal division among the five littoral states, or any other allocation—without a legitimate democratic process through which the Iranian people can freely determine Iran's national position.
Any subsequent delimitation affecting Iran's seabed, subsoil, maritime rights, or associated resources must therefore not be presented as an expression of the freely determined will of the Iranian nation in the absence of such democratic consent.
V. ABSENCE OF DEMOCRATIC CONSENT
The Islamic Republic's own constitutional framework places special protection on Iran's territorial integrity. Article 78 of the Constitution prohibits changes to the country's boundaries except for limited amendments that do not harm the country's independence, territorial integrity, or national interests, and subjects even such amendments to an exceptionally high parliamentary threshold. [20]
Yet the constitutional order itself cannot substitute for the direct consent of the Iranian people on a matter of such fundamental national importance, especially now that the parliament also does not represent the majority of Iranians through fair and monitored elections. The political system established in 1979 was presented to the Iranian people in a referendum in which the only proposed form of government was an Islamic Republic; [21] the referendum was not a choice among competing constitutional systems, and contemporary historical accounts note that voting was not conducted by secret ballot [22], as required for a legitimate referendum with international standards. The subsequent Constitution was approved in a separate referendum in December 1979. [20]
Decisions that would permanently alter Iran's territorial integrity or relinquish fundamental sovereign rights must therefore be subject to the direct consent of the Iranian people through a free, fair, and internationally supervised national referendum.
No such referendum has been held concerning Iran's Caspian rights.
Accordingly, any purported relinquishment or permanent diminution of Iran's Caspian rights by the Islamic Republic must not be represented as the consent of the Iranian people, nor as an irrevocable expression of the will of the Iranian nation.
The Iranian nation has not consented.
We therefore call upon the international community to distinguish clearly between Iran, the enduring nation whose sovereign rights are at issue, and the Islamic Republic, the regime that currently exercises power over Iranian territory without a democratic mandate from its people.
VI. DECLARATION OF NON-CONSENT AND RESERVATION OF RIGHTS
We, the undersigned citizens of Iran, hereby declare:
1. We do not consent to the permanent relinquishment, transfer, abandonment, or diminution of Iran's sovereign rights in the Caspian Sea without the free and democratic consent of the Iranian people.
2. We reject any representation that such relinquishment or diminution constitutes the freely expressed will of the Iranian nation.
3. We do not accept any particular delimitation of the Caspian seabed or subsoil as an uncontested expression of Iran's national consent merely by virtue of an action undertaken by the present regime.
4. We affirm the continuing importance of Iran's historical rights, claims, and interests in the Caspian Sea and expressly preserve those rights and claims for the Iranian nation.
5. We do not consent to any departure from Iran's historical position—including acceptance of any alternative allocation of the Caspian Sea—without a legitimate democratic government and the free and direct consent of the Iranian people through a national referendum.
6. We affirm the right of the Iranian nation and its legitimate democratic representatives to defend, negotiate, review, and, where legally available, challenge arrangements affecting Iran's sovereign rights and interests in the Caspian Sea.
7. We call upon governments and relevant international institutions not to represent any purported relinquishment or delimitation of Iran's Caspian rights as having received the freely determined consent of the Iranian people.
VII. NOTICE TO THE CASPIAN LITTORAL STATES
We hereby place the governments of Russia, Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, and Turkmenistan on notice of the position expressed in this Declaration.
We reject any bilateral or multilateral arrangement that compromises or diminishes Iran's territorial integrity, sovereign rights, seabed, subsoil, or natural resources without the free and democratic consent of the Iranian people.
We call upon the four Caspian states not to treat the absence of democratic consent in Iran as an opportunity to secure permanent advantages at the expense of the Iranian nation.
We further call upon them to preserve, rather than prejudice, the possibility of a future settlement accepted by a legitimate and democratically constituted government representing the Iranian people.
VIII. OUR DEMANDS
We call upon the international community and all relevant authorities to support the following principles:
1. No irreversible relinquishment of Iranian Caspian rights without the free and democratic consent of the Iranian people.
2. Full transparency concerning all agreements, negotiations, maps, coordinates, protocols, and other instruments relating to Iran's Caspian delimitation and resource rights.
3. Independent international legal and cartographic examination of Iran's historical and contemporary Caspian claims.
4. Preservation of all Iranian territorial, maritime, seabed, subsoil, resource, and other sovereign claims pending a legitimate and lawful settlement.
5. Recognition that the actions of the Islamic Republic must not be represented as the freely expressed consent of the Iranian people.
6. Preservation of the right of the Iranian nation and its legitimate democratic representatives to defend Iran's national interests and, where legally available, review, renegotiate, or challenge arrangements affecting Iran's Caspian rights.
IX. APPEAL TO THE INTERNATIONAL COMMUNITY
We call upon the United Nations, governments, international organizations, legal institutions, scholars, journalists, and civil-society organizations to recognize and preserve this Declaration as the expressed position of the Iranian people.
We reject any treaty, agreement, or arrangement that compromises Iran's territorial integrity, sovereign rights, or national resources without the free and democratic consent of the Iranian people—including any arrangement that reduces or permanently diminishes Iran's rightful share of the Caspian Sea, its seabed, subsoil, or resources.
We ask the international community not to equate actions of the Islamic Republic with the consent of the Iranian nation, and to preserve this Declaration as a formal record of our non-consent.
We call for independent examination of Iran's historical Caspian rights, the 2018 Convention, subsequent agreements, and all proposed seabed and subsoil delimitations.
X. APPEAL TO THE IRANIAN PEOPLE
The Caspian Sea is not the property of any government, political faction, military organization, or individual.
Iran's rights in the Caspian Sea belong to the Iranian nation and to generations of Iranians yet to come.
We therefore call upon Iranians inside Iran and throughout the world—regardless of political affiliation, ideology, religion, ethnicity, or place of residence—to unite around one simple principle:
Iran's national rights cannot be surrendered without the consent of the Iranian people.
By signing this Declaration, we affirm our determination that Iran's sovereign rights and rightful share in the Caspian Sea shall remain a matter for the Iranian nation and its legitimate democratic representatives.
XI. PRESERVATION OF THE HISTORICAL AND LEGAL RECORD
This Declaration is intended to establish a contemporaneous public record of the position expressed by its signatories in 2026.
The signatories expressly request that this Declaration, together with its signature record and supporting documentation, be preserved for the historical and legal record.
Nothing in this Declaration shall be interpreted as waiving, abandoning, or extinguishing any right or claim belonging to the Iranian nation.
Nor shall silence, acquiescence, or the passage of time be understood by the signatories as evidence that they have consented to the permanent relinquishment of Iran's Caspian rights.
XII. DECLARATION OF THE SIGNATORIES
By signing below, I affirm:
I endorse the Declaration of the Iranian People on Iran's Sovereign Rights in the Caspian Sea. I affirm that I do not consent to the permanent relinquishment, transfer, or diminution of Iran's sovereign rights in the Caspian Sea without the free and democratic consent of the Iranian people. I ask the international community to recognize and preserve this position as an expression of the Iranian people's will.
Endorsing Organizations
Lion and Sun Stichting – Netherlands (Mithra)
The Lion and Sun Organization, Mission, Canada
Iranian Canadian Patriots YEG, Alberta, Canada
Iranian Students Association RheinMain e.V. , Germany
Shir O Khorshid Students' Association – UK
Names and signatures of Iranian people attached
REFERENCES
[1] Encyclopaedia Iranica, Caspian Sea ii. Diplomatic History in Modern Times
https://www.iranicaonline.org/articles/caspian-sea-ii-diplomatic-history-in-modern-times/
[2] Treaty of Friendship between Persia and the Russian Socialist Federal Soviet Republic, Moscow, 26 February 1921, League of Nations Treaty Series, No. 268.
https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Treaty_of_the_friendschip_between_Persia_and_the_Russian_Socialist_Federal_Soviet_Republic,_signed_at_Moscow,_February_26,_1921_-_Englisch_Version_-_Leage_of_Nations_-_Treaty_Series.pdf
[3] Convention on the Legal Status of the Caspian Sea, Aktau, 12 August 2018 — particularly Article 8 concerning seabed and subsoil delimitation.
[4] Associated Press, Hard-liners dominate Iran parliamentary vote that saw a record-low turnout and boycott calls, 2 March 2024; see also reporting on candidate restrictions and the approximately 41% turnout.
https://apnews.com/article/845fabad51eb26bf7fef8087c030f8f8
[5] The Guardian, Iran election turnout drops to 41% as reformists criticise poll, 2 March 2024.
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2024/mar/02/iran-election-turnout-drops-to-41-as-reformists-criticise-poll
[6] Associated Press, Iran disqualifies former moderate president from running for reelection to influential assembly, 25 January 2024
https://apnews.com/article/5185fddef7c631d2dfcabc4b361e75e5
[7] United Nations Human Rights Committee, documentation concerning Iran's nationwide protests, including the December 2017–January 2018, November 2019, and September 2022 protests and the response of Iranian authorities.
[8] Amnesty International, What happened at the protests in Iran?, 26 January 2026
https://www.amnesty.org/en/latest/campaigns/2026/01/what-happened-at-the-protests-in-iran/
[9] United Nations Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights, Mahsa Amini: Acting UN human rights chief urges impartial probe into death in Iran, 20 September 2022.
https://www.ohchr.org/en/press-releases/2022/09/mahsa-amini-acting-un-human-rights-chief-urges-impartial-probe-death-iran
[10] United Nations Human Rights Office, Special Procedures communication concerning the 2022 protests following the death of Mahsa Amini.
https://spcommreports.ohchr.org/TmSearch/RelCom?code=IRN+23%2F2022
[11] Amnesty International, Iran: Further Information: Protesters and dissidents at risk of execution, 21 May 2026.
https://www.amnesty.org/en/documents/mde13/1032/2026/en/
[12] Human Rights Watch, Iran: The Islamic Republic at 31.
https://www.hrw.org/reports/iran0210web.pdf
[13] Federal Government of Germany, Kanzlerstatement zur Lage im Nahen Osten — Chancellor Friedrich Merz stating that the Iranian Mullah regime had “keinerlei Legitimation mehr,” (Fragerunde im Anschluss)
https://www.bundesregierung.de/breg-de/aktuelles/kanzler-statement-naher-osten-2409172
[14] United Nations, Vienna Convention on the Law of Treaties, 1969.
https://treaties.un.org/pages/ViewDetailsIII.aspx?chapter=23&mtdsg_no=XXIII-1&src=IND
[15] United Nations International Law Commission, Law of Treaties.
https://legal.un.org/ilc/texts/1_1.shtml
[16] Central Asia and the Caucasus, The Tehran Summit, or the Russian President's Visit to Iran.
https://www.ca-c.org/index.php/cac/article/view/1164
[17] Iran International, Iran moves to ratify Caspian Sea pact with seabed rights still unresolved, 7 August 2026.
https://www.iranintl.com/en/202608076370
[18] United Nations, Convention on the Legal Status of the Caspian Sea — Articles 22 and 23 concerning entry into force and registration.
[19] United Nations, Charter of the United Nations, Article 102
https://www.un.org/en/about-us/un-charter/full-text
[20] Constitution of the Islamic Republic of Iran, particularly Article 78 concerning changes to national boundaries and protection of territorial integrity.
https://www.constituteproject.org/constitution/Iran_1989
[21] Ronald Koven, Iranians Vote on Islamic Republic Issue, The Washington Post, 30 March 1979 — contemporary reporting on the referendum procedure, including the absence of private voting booths and the visibility of voters’ choices.
[22] Library of Congress, Iran: A Country Study — historical account of the March 1979 referendum establishing the Islamic Republic and the December 1979 referendum approving the Constitution, including the structure of the questions and voting process.
_________________________________________________________________________
This Declaration is a civic statement by its signatories. It does not purport to constitute a treaty reservation under international law or to prejudge the jurisdiction of any international court or tribunal. Its purpose is to formally record the non-consent of the undersigned Iranian citizens and to preserve Iran's national rights and claims for the present and future.
45
The Issue
Declaration of Non-Consent, Preservation of National Rights, and Notice to the International Community
14 August 2026
The PDF version in both English and Persian can be found on this link: PDF Version
نسخۀ پیدیاف به دو زبان انگلیسی و پارسی در این لینک موجود است: نسخۀ پیدیاف
Quick Summary
This Declaration upholds the Iranian people's sovereign rights in the Caspian Sea and rejects any relinquishment or reduction of those rights without their free and democratic consent. It records our non-consent to decisions made by the Islamic Republic and calls for Iran's Caspian rights to be determined by the Iranian people through a free and fair democratic process.
I. PREAMBLE
The Caspian Sea is an inseparable part of Iran's history, geography, national identity, security, and economic future.
Before the dissolution of the Soviet Union in 1991, Iran and the Soviet Union were the two littoral states of the Caspian Sea, operating under a bilateral treaty regime that recognized important principles of equality and reciprocal rights. The Caspian was historically understood in Iran as a shared Iranian-Soviet sea, with an equal 50–50 understanding of the rights of the two littoral states. [1][2]
Following the dissolution of the Soviet Union, four newly independent states—Russia, Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, and Turkmenistan—became littoral states of the Caspian. No comprehensive five-state delimitation of the seabed and subsoil has been established on the basis of the Iranian people's consent. Iran has maintained its own historical and legal positions concerning the division of the Caspian and its resources. [1][3]
Today, decisions concerning Iran's rights in the Caspian Sea are being made by a regime that does not derive its authority from the freely expressed will of the Iranian people.
We, the undersigned citizens of Iran, therefore issue this Declaration to affirm our position, to place the international community and the Caspian littoral states on formal notice, and to preserve the rights and claims of the Iranian nation for the present and future.
II. THE IRANIAN PEOPLE AND NATIONAL SOVEREIGNTY
The sovereignty and national resources of Iran belong to the Iranian nation.
The regime presently exercising power in Iran must not be equated with the Iranian people themselves.
The Iranian people have not been afforded a free and democratic process through which they may determine whether Iran's sovereign rights in the Caspian Sea should be relinquished, diminished, transferred, or permanently settled.
The Islamic Republic's electoral system does not provide a genuinely open democratic choice over the country's political future. Candidates are subject to institutional vetting and disqualification, while political competition is restricted by the constitutional and political structure of the Islamic Republic. Recent elections have also witnessed historically low participation; as an example, turnout in the March 2024 parliamentary election was announced as approximately 41 percent [4][5], with experts predicting even lower rates given the unfair and unmonitored reality of elections under Islamic Republic. [6]
The absence of popular consent has also been repeatedly demonstrated through mass movements demanding fundamental political change, including the 2009 Green Movement, the nationwide protests of 2017–18, the November 2019 uprising, the 2022 Mahsa Amini uprising, and the massive, nationwide protests that began in late 2025 and continued into 2026. [7-12]
These repeated expressions of public opposition demonstrate that the legitimacy of the existing political order has been persistently and publicly contested by large segments of the Iranian population. The mass killing of protesters in January 2026 and the brutal suppression of dissent further exposed the regime's lack of popular legitimacy. In January 2026, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz stated that the Iranian “Mullah regime” had “no legitimacy” to remain in power. [13]
The Iranian nation has therefore neither authorized nor been given a genuine democratic mechanism to authorize the permanent relinquishment of its territorial or sovereign rights.
III. IRAN'S HISTORICAL POSITION IN THE CASPIAN SEA
During the Pahlavi era, Iran and the Soviet Union were the two states bordering the Caspian Sea.
The Treaty of Friendship of 1921 and subsequent agreements governing commerce and navigation established important principles of equality and reciprocal rights between Iran and the Soviet Union concerning navigation and the use of the Caspian. The 1940 Treaty of Commerce and Navigation continued this framework. [1][2]
The historical regime did not establish a modern cartographic boundary assigning precisely 50 percent of the Caspian surface or seabed to Iran. Rather, Iran and the Soviet Union operated under a bilateral regime of equal and reciprocal rights, and the 1940 diplomatic exchange referred to the Caspian as an “Iran and Soviet sea.” This formed the basis for the longstanding Iranian understanding of the Caspian as a jointly shared sea, commonly expressed as an equal 50–50 share. [1]
The dissolution of the Soviet Union fundamentally changed the political geography of the Caspian. The emergence of four new littoral states created the need for a new multilateral framework and for agreement on the delimitation of the seabed and subsoil.
Iran did not, by that transformation alone, consent to abandon its historical rights or accept a particular new percentage of the Caspian.
The Iranian people have not authorized the relinquishment of the historical position, nor have they authorized acceptance of any alternative allocation. Any decision to depart from Iran's historical position—including acceptance of an equal division among the five littoral states or any other allocation—must be made through a legitimate democratic government and with the free and direct consent of the Iranian people.
IV. THE 2018 CONVENTION ON THE LEGAL STATUS OF THE CASPIAN SEA
On 12 August 2018, Iran, Russia, Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, and Turkmenistan signed the Convention on the Legal Status of the Caspian Sea. [3]
The Convention establishes a framework governing the Caspian Sea, including territorial waters, fishing zones, navigation, security, environmental protection, and the exploitation of seabed and subsoil resources.
The Convention does not itself assign Iran a fixed percentage of the Caspian seabed or subsoil. Article 8 provides that delimitation of the seabed and subsoil into sectors is to be effected by agreement between states with adjacent and opposite coasts, taking into account generally recognized principles and norms of international law. [3][14][15]
Figures of approximately 11–13 percent have nevertheless been reported as a possible Iranian share under certain approaches to seabed delimitation. [16][17] We reject any characterization of 11–13 percent as an established, accepted, or legitimate share of Iran's Caspian rights. This figure is not assigned to Iran by the 2018 Convention itself, and Iran has not consented through the Convention to such an allocation. The Convention also contains provisions concerning its entry into force and registration. [18][19]
More broadly, the Iranian people do not consent to any particular allocation of Iran's Caspian rights—whether 11–13 percent, 20 percent, 50 percent, an equal division among the five littoral states, or any other allocation—without a legitimate democratic process through which the Iranian people can freely determine Iran's national position.
Any subsequent delimitation affecting Iran's seabed, subsoil, maritime rights, or associated resources must therefore not be presented as an expression of the freely determined will of the Iranian nation in the absence of such democratic consent.
V. ABSENCE OF DEMOCRATIC CONSENT
The Islamic Republic's own constitutional framework places special protection on Iran's territorial integrity. Article 78 of the Constitution prohibits changes to the country's boundaries except for limited amendments that do not harm the country's independence, territorial integrity, or national interests, and subjects even such amendments to an exceptionally high parliamentary threshold. [20]
Yet the constitutional order itself cannot substitute for the direct consent of the Iranian people on a matter of such fundamental national importance, especially now that the parliament also does not represent the majority of Iranians through fair and monitored elections. The political system established in 1979 was presented to the Iranian people in a referendum in which the only proposed form of government was an Islamic Republic; [21] the referendum was not a choice among competing constitutional systems, and contemporary historical accounts note that voting was not conducted by secret ballot [22], as required for a legitimate referendum with international standards. The subsequent Constitution was approved in a separate referendum in December 1979. [20]
Decisions that would permanently alter Iran's territorial integrity or relinquish fundamental sovereign rights must therefore be subject to the direct consent of the Iranian people through a free, fair, and internationally supervised national referendum.
No such referendum has been held concerning Iran's Caspian rights.
Accordingly, any purported relinquishment or permanent diminution of Iran's Caspian rights by the Islamic Republic must not be represented as the consent of the Iranian people, nor as an irrevocable expression of the will of the Iranian nation.
The Iranian nation has not consented.
We therefore call upon the international community to distinguish clearly between Iran, the enduring nation whose sovereign rights are at issue, and the Islamic Republic, the regime that currently exercises power over Iranian territory without a democratic mandate from its people.
VI. DECLARATION OF NON-CONSENT AND RESERVATION OF RIGHTS
We, the undersigned citizens of Iran, hereby declare:
1. We do not consent to the permanent relinquishment, transfer, abandonment, or diminution of Iran's sovereign rights in the Caspian Sea without the free and democratic consent of the Iranian people.
2. We reject any representation that such relinquishment or diminution constitutes the freely expressed will of the Iranian nation.
3. We do not accept any particular delimitation of the Caspian seabed or subsoil as an uncontested expression of Iran's national consent merely by virtue of an action undertaken by the present regime.
4. We affirm the continuing importance of Iran's historical rights, claims, and interests in the Caspian Sea and expressly preserve those rights and claims for the Iranian nation.
5. We do not consent to any departure from Iran's historical position—including acceptance of any alternative allocation of the Caspian Sea—without a legitimate democratic government and the free and direct consent of the Iranian people through a national referendum.
6. We affirm the right of the Iranian nation and its legitimate democratic representatives to defend, negotiate, review, and, where legally available, challenge arrangements affecting Iran's sovereign rights and interests in the Caspian Sea.
7. We call upon governments and relevant international institutions not to represent any purported relinquishment or delimitation of Iran's Caspian rights as having received the freely determined consent of the Iranian people.
VII. NOTICE TO THE CASPIAN LITTORAL STATES
We hereby place the governments of Russia, Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, and Turkmenistan on notice of the position expressed in this Declaration.
We reject any bilateral or multilateral arrangement that compromises or diminishes Iran's territorial integrity, sovereign rights, seabed, subsoil, or natural resources without the free and democratic consent of the Iranian people.
We call upon the four Caspian states not to treat the absence of democratic consent in Iran as an opportunity to secure permanent advantages at the expense of the Iranian nation.
We further call upon them to preserve, rather than prejudice, the possibility of a future settlement accepted by a legitimate and democratically constituted government representing the Iranian people.
VIII. OUR DEMANDS
We call upon the international community and all relevant authorities to support the following principles:
1. No irreversible relinquishment of Iranian Caspian rights without the free and democratic consent of the Iranian people.
2. Full transparency concerning all agreements, negotiations, maps, coordinates, protocols, and other instruments relating to Iran's Caspian delimitation and resource rights.
3. Independent international legal and cartographic examination of Iran's historical and contemporary Caspian claims.
4. Preservation of all Iranian territorial, maritime, seabed, subsoil, resource, and other sovereign claims pending a legitimate and lawful settlement.
5. Recognition that the actions of the Islamic Republic must not be represented as the freely expressed consent of the Iranian people.
6. Preservation of the right of the Iranian nation and its legitimate democratic representatives to defend Iran's national interests and, where legally available, review, renegotiate, or challenge arrangements affecting Iran's Caspian rights.
IX. APPEAL TO THE INTERNATIONAL COMMUNITY
We call upon the United Nations, governments, international organizations, legal institutions, scholars, journalists, and civil-society organizations to recognize and preserve this Declaration as the expressed position of the Iranian people.
We reject any treaty, agreement, or arrangement that compromises Iran's territorial integrity, sovereign rights, or national resources without the free and democratic consent of the Iranian people—including any arrangement that reduces or permanently diminishes Iran's rightful share of the Caspian Sea, its seabed, subsoil, or resources.
We ask the international community not to equate actions of the Islamic Republic with the consent of the Iranian nation, and to preserve this Declaration as a formal record of our non-consent.
We call for independent examination of Iran's historical Caspian rights, the 2018 Convention, subsequent agreements, and all proposed seabed and subsoil delimitations.
X. APPEAL TO THE IRANIAN PEOPLE
The Caspian Sea is not the property of any government, political faction, military organization, or individual.
Iran's rights in the Caspian Sea belong to the Iranian nation and to generations of Iranians yet to come.
We therefore call upon Iranians inside Iran and throughout the world—regardless of political affiliation, ideology, religion, ethnicity, or place of residence—to unite around one simple principle:
Iran's national rights cannot be surrendered without the consent of the Iranian people.
By signing this Declaration, we affirm our determination that Iran's sovereign rights and rightful share in the Caspian Sea shall remain a matter for the Iranian nation and its legitimate democratic representatives.
XI. PRESERVATION OF THE HISTORICAL AND LEGAL RECORD
This Declaration is intended to establish a contemporaneous public record of the position expressed by its signatories in 2026.
The signatories expressly request that this Declaration, together with its signature record and supporting documentation, be preserved for the historical and legal record.
Nothing in this Declaration shall be interpreted as waiving, abandoning, or extinguishing any right or claim belonging to the Iranian nation.
Nor shall silence, acquiescence, or the passage of time be understood by the signatories as evidence that they have consented to the permanent relinquishment of Iran's Caspian rights.
XII. DECLARATION OF THE SIGNATORIES
By signing below, I affirm:
I endorse the Declaration of the Iranian People on Iran's Sovereign Rights in the Caspian Sea. I affirm that I do not consent to the permanent relinquishment, transfer, or diminution of Iran's sovereign rights in the Caspian Sea without the free and democratic consent of the Iranian people. I ask the international community to recognize and preserve this position as an expression of the Iranian people's will.
Endorsing Organizations
Lion and Sun Stichting – Netherlands (Mithra)
The Lion and Sun Organization, Mission, Canada
Iranian Canadian Patriots YEG, Alberta, Canada
Iranian Students Association RheinMain e.V. , Germany
Shir O Khorshid Students' Association – UK
Names and signatures of Iranian people attached
REFERENCES
[1] Encyclopaedia Iranica, Caspian Sea ii. Diplomatic History in Modern Times
https://www.iranicaonline.org/articles/caspian-sea-ii-diplomatic-history-in-modern-times/
[2] Treaty of Friendship between Persia and the Russian Socialist Federal Soviet Republic, Moscow, 26 February 1921, League of Nations Treaty Series, No. 268.
https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Treaty_of_the_friendschip_between_Persia_and_the_Russian_Socialist_Federal_Soviet_Republic,_signed_at_Moscow,_February_26,_1921_-_Englisch_Version_-_Leage_of_Nations_-_Treaty_Series.pdf
[3] Convention on the Legal Status of the Caspian Sea, Aktau, 12 August 2018 — particularly Article 8 concerning seabed and subsoil delimitation.
[4] Associated Press, Hard-liners dominate Iran parliamentary vote that saw a record-low turnout and boycott calls, 2 March 2024; see also reporting on candidate restrictions and the approximately 41% turnout.
https://apnews.com/article/845fabad51eb26bf7fef8087c030f8f8
[5] The Guardian, Iran election turnout drops to 41% as reformists criticise poll, 2 March 2024.
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2024/mar/02/iran-election-turnout-drops-to-41-as-reformists-criticise-poll
[6] Associated Press, Iran disqualifies former moderate president from running for reelection to influential assembly, 25 January 2024
https://apnews.com/article/5185fddef7c631d2dfcabc4b361e75e5
[7] United Nations Human Rights Committee, documentation concerning Iran's nationwide protests, including the December 2017–January 2018, November 2019, and September 2022 protests and the response of Iranian authorities.
[8] Amnesty International, What happened at the protests in Iran?, 26 January 2026
https://www.amnesty.org/en/latest/campaigns/2026/01/what-happened-at-the-protests-in-iran/
[9] United Nations Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights, Mahsa Amini: Acting UN human rights chief urges impartial probe into death in Iran, 20 September 2022.
https://www.ohchr.org/en/press-releases/2022/09/mahsa-amini-acting-un-human-rights-chief-urges-impartial-probe-death-iran
[10] United Nations Human Rights Office, Special Procedures communication concerning the 2022 protests following the death of Mahsa Amini.
https://spcommreports.ohchr.org/TmSearch/RelCom?code=IRN+23%2F2022
[11] Amnesty International, Iran: Further Information: Protesters and dissidents at risk of execution, 21 May 2026.
https://www.amnesty.org/en/documents/mde13/1032/2026/en/
[12] Human Rights Watch, Iran: The Islamic Republic at 31.
https://www.hrw.org/reports/iran0210web.pdf
[13] Federal Government of Germany, Kanzlerstatement zur Lage im Nahen Osten — Chancellor Friedrich Merz stating that the Iranian Mullah regime had “keinerlei Legitimation mehr,” (Fragerunde im Anschluss)
https://www.bundesregierung.de/breg-de/aktuelles/kanzler-statement-naher-osten-2409172
[14] United Nations, Vienna Convention on the Law of Treaties, 1969.
https://treaties.un.org/pages/ViewDetailsIII.aspx?chapter=23&mtdsg_no=XXIII-1&src=IND
[15] United Nations International Law Commission, Law of Treaties.
https://legal.un.org/ilc/texts/1_1.shtml
[16] Central Asia and the Caucasus, The Tehran Summit, or the Russian President's Visit to Iran.
https://www.ca-c.org/index.php/cac/article/view/1164
[17] Iran International, Iran moves to ratify Caspian Sea pact with seabed rights still unresolved, 7 August 2026.
https://www.iranintl.com/en/202608076370
[18] United Nations, Convention on the Legal Status of the Caspian Sea — Articles 22 and 23 concerning entry into force and registration.
[19] United Nations, Charter of the United Nations, Article 102
https://www.un.org/en/about-us/un-charter/full-text
[20] Constitution of the Islamic Republic of Iran, particularly Article 78 concerning changes to national boundaries and protection of territorial integrity.
https://www.constituteproject.org/constitution/Iran_1989
[21] Ronald Koven, Iranians Vote on Islamic Republic Issue, The Washington Post, 30 March 1979 — contemporary reporting on the referendum procedure, including the absence of private voting booths and the visibility of voters’ choices.
[22] Library of Congress, Iran: A Country Study — historical account of the March 1979 referendum establishing the Islamic Republic and the December 1979 referendum approving the Constitution, including the structure of the questions and voting process.
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This Declaration is a civic statement by its signatories. It does not purport to constitute a treaty reservation under international law or to prejudge the jurisdiction of any international court or tribunal. Its purpose is to formally record the non-consent of the undersigned Iranian citizens and to preserve Iran's national rights and claims for the present and future.
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Petition created on August 14, 2026