The first oil has flown from a new project in Azerbaijan ... as the United States and Russia compete for influence over the region's energy wealth.

Moscow correspondent Linda Mottram reports politicians flew in from around the world for the event ... amid intense international interest in the strategic Caspian region.

The consortium brings together 12 energy companies, including major British and American, as well as Russian interests ... in a region that promises to produce oil in quantitues second only to the Gulf. Senior politicians from around the world were on hand to see