Middle East Conflict Impacts Uzbekistan Aviation Market

Tashkent, Uzbekistan (UzDaily.com) — The conflict in the Middle East is affecting Uzbekistan’s air transport market, as well as the global aviation industry as a whole, according to Deputy Minister of Transport Jasurbek Choriev.

He noted that around 21% of global energy resources are concentrated in Middle Eastern countries, and any disruptions in such volumes affect all states, including major oil producers such as Russia and Kazakhstan.

Choriev stressed that it is not possible to quickly replace the missing volumes of oil. According to him, this requires significant time and large-scale investment in upgrading existing facilities as well as developing new extraction and refining capacities. He estimated that compensating for such supply gaps could take between six and twelve months and would involve high costs.

The deputy minister said that Uzbekistan has already taken measures to build fuel reserves and is also implementing steps to stabilize aviation fuel prices.

At the same time, he noted that existing reserves are not unlimited.

He warned that further escalation of the situation in the Middle East and continued instability in energy markets could lead to rising prices, including in the aviation sector.