Key Central Asian gas suppliers refused to sign a new cooperation pact to expedite the Nabucco pipeline project.
The European Union (EU) had invited eight countries from Central Asia and Middle East for talks in Prague Friday to speed up the ambitious plan that would open up a southern corridor for energy supplies bypassing Russia.
Czech Prime Minister Mirek Topolanek, whose country holds the six-month EU presidency, acknowledged that "We haven't overcome all obstacles by far," as Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan and Turkmenistan did not sign the final declaration.
Two other suppliers -- Azerbaijan and Egypt -- and two key transit nations -- Turkey and Georgia signed the agreement.
Iraq did not turn up for the summit, reports said.
The EU, which currently consumes a large amount of natural gas supplied by Russia, aims at reducing heavy dependence on Russia for their energy requirements. The long-planned Nabucco pipeline that would bring gas from Central Asia through Caspian Sea route is seen as a solution to this problem.
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May 01, 2026 15:54 ET Central banks dominated the economics news flow this week with almost all major ones announcing their latest policy decisions and many boosted expectations for a rate hike in June. In other news, several countries released the preliminary data for first quarter economic growth. In the U.S., comments by Fed Chair Jerome Powell were also in focus as his term ends this month.