As the novel coronavirus responsible for the COVID-19 pandemic continued to spread across the Eurasian landmass and beyond, the energy-producing states of the South Caucasus and Central Asia were dealt a separate, serious economic blow by Russia. Specifically, Russia’s decision to pull out of the OPEC+ curtailed oil production deal with Saudi Arabia clearly did not take into account the impact on its regional partners Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan and Turkmenistan, which are also heavily reliant on hydrocarbon sales. Thus, even before these countries began to register significant numbers of cases of coronavirus, they announced various stimulus plans to rescue their economies from the Russo-Saudi oil price war. The eventual onset of the pandemic throughout the region has since intensified that trend.
OP-ED
Stephen Blank: Azerbaijan and Central Asia are caught in Russia’s oil war
A photograph taken on March 19, 2019 shows the oil wells of Bibi Heybat Oil Field, situated at the coast of the Caspian Sea outside Baku.
