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The European Union may offer Uzbekistan friendship in exchange for energy resources
"The pressure Russia is applying [to European countries] in the energy sphere is upsetting. The European Union is on a lookout for other sources of power and alternative oil and gas routes. I'd say it is a correct thing to do. Doing something else will be a mistake of the magnitude that permits mistakes like that to be made only once a century. This mistake will be fatal," Czech Prime Minister Mirek Topolanek announced at the EU Energy Forum in Prague on October 23-24, 2006. As far as the Czech premier is concerned, Russia is using oil and gas as an instrument in its geopolitical games. Topolanek's statement does not really surprise the analysts that keep an eye on the EU policy. Determined to lessen its dependence on Russia in the energy sphere, the EU has been studying expansion of its clout with the Caucasus and Central Asia. Europe takes vivid interest in Central Asia as a potential store of energy resources. The road to Central Asian energy resources goes via Uzbekistan, a country that wields considerable influence with the region because Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan depend on it for gas and oil. In fact, some analysts suspect that Uzbekistan wields clout even with Turkmenistan.
Experts predict therefore that the EU will reconsider the sanctions against Uzbekistan.
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