https://video.echelon.pl/videos/watch/884d5a82-b2f0-4884-840a-556e855f2e37 In the middle of August, a major power disruption hit parts of Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, and Uzbekistan, highlighting the vulnerability of Central Asia’s Soviet-era, interconnected electricity system. For a long time, Russia has used energy infrastructure as both an economic tool and a source of political leverage. The war in Ukraine is accelerating Central Asia’s search for alternative partners and routes, but with China expanding its economic and energy footprint, will diversifying away from Moscow not simply make the region dependent on Beijing? In this episode of Eastern Express host Benjamin Lee is joined by Krzysztof Jaworski, Deputy Director at the Institute for Security and International Development, to discuss why energy security is becoming a strategic priority for the region and – against the backdrop of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization summit in Bishkek and closer ties between Vladimir Putin and Xi Jinping – how Central Asian states are balancing Russia, China, and other partners while trying to preserve their strategic independence. Chapters: 00:00 Introduction: Central Asia’s energy security challenge – Russia as primary supplier 02:52 Introduction: Negative effects of Soviet-era interdependence and regional geopolitics 07:45 Interview: Russia’s energy leverage – infrastructure 10:15 Interview: Balancing diversification with dependence on Russia 14:39 Interview: China’s growing influence and the risks of forging new dependencies 16:22 Interview: The Shanghai Cooperation Organization and Sino-Russian relations 19:13 Eastern News Flash 🔴 Watch our 24/7 livestream - https://youtube.com/live/9RY46AUtIl4 Bringing you all the latest daily news and updates, TVP World is Poland's first English-language channel where you can find world news as seen from the Polish perspective and the latest news from the CEE region. Follow us on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram. https://tvpworld.com/ https://www.facebook.com/tvpworldcom https://twitter.com/TVPWorld_com https://www.instagram.com/tvp_world/ https://www.threads.net/@tvp_world https://bsky.app/profile/tvpworld.bsky.social https://www.tiktok.com/@tvpworld.com https://t.me/tvp_world #China #Asia #Xi Fri, 30 Oct 2026 20:14:08 GMT https://validator.w3.org/feed/docs/rss2.html PeerTube - https://video.echelon.pl https://video.echelon.pl/client/assets/images/icons/icon-1500x1500.png https://video.echelon.pl/videos/watch/884d5a82-b2f0-4884-840a-556e855f2e37 All rights reserved, unless otherwise specified in the terms specified at https://video.echelon.pl/about and potential licenses granted by each content's rightholder.