Sergei Samoilov, deputy chairman of the state committee for nature protection, told reporters in Tashkent negotiations with Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan were progressing too slowly.

At issue are the region's two main rivers, the Syr Darya and the Amu Darya, which Samoilov said could meet the needs of everyone in the area.

Kyrgyzstan uses the Syr Darya river for hydroelectric power, while its two downstream neighbors rely on it for irrigation. Uzbekistan wants a good summer flow, but wants Kyrgyzstan to slow the river during the winter to prevent floods on its territory.

There are also fears of a water crisis in southern Uzbekistan if a crumbling Soviet-built water pumping station on the Amu Darya river in Turkmenistan territory should collapse, the report said.