INSUBCONTINENT EXCLUSIVE:
Russian Vladimir Putin on Saturday announced the start of gas supplies to Uzbekistan via Kazakhstan, a boost for Russia's industry hit by a
Asian country of Uzbekistan has faced energy shortages.Moscow meanwhile relies heavily on energy revenues but has seen export plummet since
the offensive."This is the largest trilateral energy project" between the three ex-Soviet countries, Putin said, after formally launching
the shipment.He was hosting a meeting in Moscow with his Uzbek and Kazakh counterparts, Shavkat Mirziyoyev and Kassym-Jomart Tokayev."The
timely implementation of such..
project shows that Russia, Kazakhstan, and Uzbekistan are capable of tackling the most complex and ambitious tasks," Putin said."Kazakhstan
will be able to solve the issue of gasification of its northern and eastern regions" while Uzbekistan will "gain another source of
energy".Putin added that the leaders would during the afternoon discuss further cooperation in the energy sector as a whole.Russia's
offensive against Ukraine has rattled nerves in Central Asian nations, including Kazakhstan, which has sought to distance itself from
Moscow.But the former Soviet states retain close political and economic ties with Russia.Russian gas exports decreased by 21.5 percent in
2022 as the European Union, once the largest buyer of Russian gas, drastically reduced imports.
