Struan Stevenson: Fight on to prevent former Soviet states descending into war

These nations – Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Tajikistan, Kyrgyzstan and Turkmenistan – have been independent for less than 20 years and, being well off the tourist track, remain relatively unknown.

They are, however, the scene of some of the worst environmental damage and potentially a zone of future conflict over that most precious resource of all – water.

In Soviet times, the region was an unloved backyard, deemed suitable for above-ground nuclear explosions and the dumping of millions of tonnes of radioactive waste from uranium mining in plastic-lined reservoirs, which are beginning to fall apart.

Historically, the Amu Darya river flowed out from the glaciers of mountainous Tajikistan, along the border between Afghanistan and Uzbekistan and across the desiccated plains, to the Aral Sea, once the fourth-largest body of water in the world.

But under Soviet rule, the Amu Darya and the other major river supplying the Aral Sea – the Syr Darya – were heavily exploited to irrigate vast cotton plantations and fuel ill-conceived hydro-power schemes. As a result, the Aral Sea has shrunk by 50 per cent, creating an ecological disaster of epic proportions.

Neighbouring regions are now subjected to vicious toxic dust storms, whipped up from the exposed former seabed. The once rich Aral fishing grounds are barren deserts, choked by pesticides and salt. The local population suffers a range of chronic illnesses. But that's just the start of the problem.

Since independence, the Central Asian states have pursued their own development paths – often with little regard for their neighbours. Not only has this accelerated the constriction of the Aral Sea's arteries, but it has also led to ill-feeling between countries that depend heavily on each other's resources.

So while upstream Kyrgyzstan cherishes dreams of powering its economy with hydroelectric dams, this has caused alarm in Uzbekistan and Kazakhstan, which depend on the water downstream for irrigation.

Perhaps the biggest threat to the region's stability is yet to come. When, or if, the security situation stabilises in Afghanistan, that country will want to diversify away from heroin poppies towards more reputable crops.

While this may be good for Afghanistan, it could have dire consequences for relations between the Central Asian nations, by placing even more strain on the Amu Darya river. Some 40 per cent of the Amu Darya basin lies within Afghanistan and more agricultural irrigation will have a dramatic impact downstream.

Of course, Afghanistan's people deserve a better future. But the international community must not assume that its needs automatically trump those of the Central Asian states.

While Central Asia's problems might seem remote from Scotland, if allowed to fester, they can become problems for the whole world. The only solution is an effective partnership involving all these countries, supported by international bodies such as the United Nations, the UN, the European Union and OSCE.

That's why I'm proud to be working through OSCE under the current chairmanship of the Kazakh government, to compile a report on the region's fragile ecology. Hopefully, this could be the start of a roadmap towards a more harmonious future.

Struan Stevenson is a Conservative Euro MP for Scotland. He has been appointed by the Organisation for Security and Co-operation in Europe as personal representative of the chairman in office (currently Kazakhstan), responsible for ecology and the environment, with a particular focus on Central Asia.