ABSTRACT
Narrowly defined sectoral interests (agriculture versus hydropower) and insufficient political will to cooperate hindered transboundary water cooperation in the quarter-century that followed the birth of independent states. Regional organisations could not resolve this problem, among other reasons because they did not include the energy sector. Disputes over water inflicted high economic costs on the countries and hindered environmental cooperation and climate change adaptation. Geopolitical and geoeconomic change puts increasing pressure on the countries of the basin to end resource competition in order to open the way to closer cooperation and more effective promotion of their shared interests within broader Eurasian integration processes. Transboundary water cooperation must be placed within the broadest economic, political and strategic context. The participation of downstream countries in building large reservoirs in upstream countries would assure joint control and operation of strategically important regional infrastructure. Long-term regional strategies would more clearly and convincingly reveal shared interest than a focus on short-term issues, thus ensuring sustained support by governments and societies. Existing regional frameworks must either be reformed or replaced by new forms of cooperation in order to successfully translate political will into effective integrated management of regional water resources.
