The sixth Meeting of the Signatories to the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) concerning Conservation Measures for the Siberian Crane, an instrument developed under the Convention on Migratory Species (CMS), was held from 15-19 May 2007, in Almaty, Kazakhstan.

The meeting brought together 50 participants from across the region, including officials from all eleven Range States (Afghanistan, Azerbaijan, China, India, Iran, Kazakhstan, Mongolia, Pakistan, Russian Federation, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan). Highlights of the meeting included: the official launch of the Western and Central Asian Site Network for Siberian Cranes and other Waterbirds, with the inclusion of an initial ten sites from five countries; elaboration and adoption of new, detailed Conservation Plans for each of the three flyways covered by the Siberian Crane MoU; review of important considerations related to the eventual integration, within the MoU framework, of activities currently being conducted under the GEF Siberian Crane Wetlands Project, which will draw to a close in 2009; and the inclusion of two additional partner organizations in the ranks of the MoU, Wetlands International and the Cracid Conservation and Breeding Centre.
Links to further information
CMS press release, 18 May 2007
CMS press release, 19 May 2007