History of water-energy relations in Central Asia: natural factor

Abstract

Central Asia has faced problems related to water and energy resources. First of all, it is about such natural factors as climatic conditions, melting and degradation of glacial waters, which contributed to increased pressure. As a result, this has led to competition for access to water and energy among the states of the region. The obsolescence of Soviet-era technologies and the imperfect basis of legal mechanisms, regulations and technological conclusions have led to political disagreements and complex relations among the Central Asian states. There are no comprehensive studies of water-energy relations in the Central Asian region; only some aspects of the problem under study are considered. These include works devoted to the impact of water and energy resources in Central Asia on security, economy, politics, and migration. In the article, the authors studied the natural factor in the history of water-energy relations of Central Asian states on the basis of archival materials, interviews, works of foreign and national researchers. The authors provide forecasts on prevention of conflict potential between the states of the region in the use of water and energy resources.