Azerbaijan and Iran are close to signing a bilateral agreement on dividing the floor of the Caspian Sea. \"If our working groups manage to meet the deadline, the agreement will be signed during Iranian President Mohammad Khatami\'s visit to Baku,\" Azerbaijan\'s Deputy Foreign Minister Khalaf Khalafov told journalists on Monday. Khalafov said one of the goals of the ongoing visit of Iranian Foreign Minister Kamal Kharazi is to set the date for Khatami\'s trip. He also welcomed the start of Iranian-Turkmen consultations, which are expected to result in a bilateral agreement on the division of the Caspian. \"Such negotiations will help the five littoral nations settle the issue of the status of the Caspian Sea as soon as possible, as well as improve their ties,\" he said. (Interfax)