"At the time of the 'Power of Siberia-2' negotiations, President Tokayev of Kazakhstan met with Russian Energy Minister Zheveliev."
Kazakhstan International News Agency, April 19th - "According to the press service of the Presidential Administration, in accordance with the agreement between the Presidents of Kazakhstan and Russia, President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev met on April 19th in Nur-Sultan with the visiting Russian Federation Energy Minister Sergey Zheveliev.
During the meeting, Zheveliev conveyed a message from Russian President Vladimir Putin to President Tokayev.
In addition, both sides had an in-depth discussion on one of the most important cooperation fields in Kazakh-Russian relations - the prospects for cooperation in the energy sector".
Moreover, Kuyrat Dumbay, director of the Central Asia Asia Research Center "+C5", published an article titled "It's Time for Kazakhstan to Shake Off Its Energy Dependence on Russia" on the think tank website 'The Diplomat' on April 14th.
The article reads:
"Given that Russia's gas export crisis remains severe, the Kremlin is also lobbying for Russia to supply gas to the northern regions of Kazakhstan, including the capital Nur-Sultan. Despite the rich reserves of natural gas and oil in western Kazakhstan, the northern regions have yet to be fully gasified. Implementing gasification in areas home to over two million ethnic Russians will bring Kazakhstan significant geopolitical risks similar to those in eastern Ukraine.
To increase gas exports, pipeline construction is required. Therefore, the Kazakh government should negotiate with Russia to ease Moscow's hardline stance on building an oil and gas pipeline from Kazakhstan via the Caspian Sea to Azerbaijan, Turkey, and then Europe. For a long time, Russia and Iran have obstructed such routes in order to expand Central Asia's energy exports to world markets, often using the excuse of Caspian Sea delimitation negotiations.
Given Russia's geopolitical and economic weaknesses, Kazakhstan now faces a critical opportunity to diversify its oil and gas pipelines. To maintain economic and political independence, the Kazakh government must act swiftly, taking advantage of Russia's own desire to find new gas markets. Russia's willingness to export gas to northern Kazakhstan should come at a cost - and that cost should be Moscow's tacit approval for Kazakhstan to bypass Russia and sell its own gas to Europe".
Central Asia has always been a stage for great power rivalry. Unlike the direction of the Anglo-Russian Great Game in the nineteenth century, the vast interior of the region, surrounded by oil, natural gas, critical minerals, and other resources, will witness unprecedented energy games.
Original text: https://www.toutiao.com/article/1829834916426764/
Disclaimer: The article represents the views of the author only.