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Kyrgyzstan Turns to Neighbors for Fuel as Russian Supply Risks Mount

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Kyrgyzstan is asking neighbors and allies Kazakhstan, Belarus, Azerbaijan, Uzbekistan and Turkmenistan to help shore up its fuel supplies, as relentless Ukrainian drone attacks against Russian oil refineries lead to fears of shortages, according to media reports.

The landlocked Central Asian country of 7 million, which imports 90% of its gasoline from Russia, has come under pressure as Russia hints at a potential ban on diesel exports, in order to deal with its own mounting domestic shortages.

Kyrgyzstan's Energy Ministry has since sent official requests to several neighboring nations and allies to ensure steady supplies.

While the ministry maintained that the country's fuel stocks were sufficient, Kyrgyzstan's oil traders' association has said that certain filling stations were experiencing shortages of AI-95 gasoline, according to a Reuters report.

The ministry said that the more widely-used AI-92 was available for the next 30 to 45 days, along with diesel, which is critical for the harvest season.

The country said it was accelerating efforts to diversify its fuel sources, with participants during the recent Eurasian Economic Union exploring this, with a few concrete agreements being reached, according to a report by The Times of Central Asia.

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