Russian President Vladimir Putin on Saturday gave the green light to Russian gas deliveries to Uzbekistan via Kazakhstan, at a time when the Russian gas sector is marked by sanctions imposed by the West following the Russian offensive in Ukraine, AFP and Agerpres write.
Vladimir Putin on Victory Day with the presidents of Kazakhstan and UzbekistanPhoto: Gavriil Grigorov / AFP / Profimedia Images
“Permission granted”, declared the Russian president, who was in the company of his Uzbek and Kazakh counterparts, Shavkat Mirzioev and Kasîm-Jomart Tokaev, who came to his residence near Moscow for the solemn launch ceremony broadcast by video conference.
The ceremony took place on the day the Kremlin leader turns 71.
The project launched on Saturday, “the largest trilateral energy project” between Russia and the two former Soviet republics in Central Asia, will allow Uzbekistan, also rich in hydrocarbons, to have “an additional source of energy” and Kazakhstan will be able to solve the gas problem in the northern and eastern regions of the country, Putin explained, adding that “Russia will once again be able to confirm its status as a reliable supplier of natural gas.”
Agence France-Presse notes that the Russian gas sector has been hit hard by European and American sanctions, with Russian gas exports falling by 25.1% in 2022, according to official figures, as the EU, previously the number 1 customer, and -drastically reduced imports after the Russian invasion of Ukraine last February.
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