Kazakhstan to help India meet its energy requirements; The Asian Development Bank raises previously estimated Tajikistan’s GDP growth to 6.5 per cent; Kazakhstan initiates import restrictions on Kyrgyz dairy products; Presidents of Turkmenistan and Uzbeki
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    • Kazakh Ambassador to India Doulat Kuanyshev has said that his country will provide India the necessary energy to fuel its development projects. He also supported India’s bid to become a member of the Shanghai Cooperation organization and called for an improvement in bilateral trade which stood at US$215 million in the first half of the year.1

    The Asian Development Bank has increased the previously estimated Tajikistan’s GDP growth to 6.5 per cent. It is the sole Central Asian state for which the ADB has increased its GDP growth projections and is partially due to higher than expected remittances. 2

    According to reports, Kazakhstan has initiated import restrictions on Kyrgyz dairy products on the fears of an outbreak of foot and mouth disease (FMD). This trade restriction is the latest in a long string of unfortunate events for Kyrgyzstan’s agricultural sector. Earlier this summer, an outbreak of FMD sent Kyrgyz farmers scrambling. Combined with a scorching drought which encompassed most of Eurasia and significantly cut farmers’ wheat harvests, as well as a tainted vaccine which killed thousands of livestock in southern Kyrgyzstan, this critical sector is having a difficult time regaining the levels of production seen before violent riots in 2010 disrupted the state’s economy. 3

    According to reports, Presidents of Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan have criticised Tajikistan’s Rogun dam construction on the grounds that significant amounts of water from local rivers will be diverted, which will ultimately cause hardship for Uzbekistan’s cotton crops and farmers. 4

    Japanese state-run oil and metals major Japan Oil, Gas, and Metals National Corp (JOGMEC) has reportedly agreed to work with the Uzbek government on exploiting uranium deposits in north-central Uzbekistan. The agreement is expected to be signed early next year and put into operation by March 2013. 5

    Uzbek President Islam Karimov, as part of his official visit to Turkmenistan, has discussed with his Turkmen counter part issues like regional security in the backdrop of the post 2014 military withdrawal in Afghanistan, fuel and energy, transportation, and communications linkages. 6

    In other developments, according to reports, Kazakhstan’s state-run oil and gas firm Kaz Munai Gas (KMG) will look to increase its rude oil output to 39.4 million tons by 2022, from the projected level of 24.3 million tons for 2012. The volume of oil and gas condensates will be increased from 858 million tons in 2012 to 1.5 billion tons 10 years from now. A large part of the growth will be achieved by increasing hydrocarbons reserves and production from projects in the Caspian Sea region. 7

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