(MENAFN) The Kremlin announced Tuesday that Russian President Vladimir Putin and Uzbek leader Shavkat Mirziyoyev engaged in high-level telephone diplomacy focused on expanding bilateral energy collaboration amid shifting regional supply dynamics.

The two heads of state explored mechanisms to deepen strategic cooperation spanning numerous economic and political sectors, with particular attention directed toward energy infrastructure development.

"Particular emphasis was placed on advancing key collaborative initiatives, especially within the energy domain," according to the statement.

Kremlin officials noted that both presidents recognized the critical importance of subnational partnerships in accelerating bilateral commerce, stimulating economic expansion, and strengthening cultural ties alongside broader humanitarian linkages. The leaders also praised concrete achievements emerging from October's Regional Council Meeting, which took place in the Moscow region and yielded measurable progress.

Putin and Mirziyoyev reached consensus on sustaining regular dialogue frameworks across all governmental levels in subsequent months.

The conversation occurs against a backdrop where Central Asian nations—most notably Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan—have increasingly stepped into the role of alternative energy providers for European markets. Since the Ukraine conflict erupted in early 2022, these countries have leveraged existing pipeline networks originally constructed to facilitate Russian-European energy trade, effectively rerouting supplies that previously flowed directly from Russia to the continent. This geopolitical reconfiguration has fundamentally altered regional energy architecture and commercial relationships.

MENAFN12112025000045017169ID1110330803