Major Caspian oil pipeline opened

Kazakhstan has opened the first major pipeline dedicated to carrying oil from the huge reserves of the Caspian to world markets.

The Kazakh prime minister, Kasymzhomart Tokayev, turned the tap on the pipeline which runs from the Tengiz oil field -- the sixth largest in the world -- in western Kazakhstan to the Russian Black Sea port of Novorossiysk.

The BBC Central Asia correspondent says the link could put Kazakhstan on the map as a real oil power and transform its economy. She adds that after years of speculation, drama and uncertainty, the pipeline is considered a triumph for the American-led consortium that built it, and for the governments of Russia and Kazakhstan.

From the newsroom of the BBC World Service