The Role of Energy in Turkmenistan and Russia Relations

Existence of energy reserves as God-given assets was considered as a unique opportunity for the former republics of Soviet Union، their dependence on the former center (Russia) for transferring energy to the consuming markets has confronted them with various challenges. As one of these republics، Turkmenistan enjoys excellent geo-economic status since a long time ago due to its huge natural gas reserves; the status that has been highlighted since achieving independence. As Turkmenistan struggles for free energy transfer and more profits on the one hand and Russia endeavors to maintain its exclusive right to energy transfer from Central Eurasia on the other، bilateral relations between these two countries have become more important. This article is an attempt to study these aspects and their roles in the relations between these two countries، along with the role played by other regional and transregional actors.